Waist-line clue to heart disease

Tuesday December 8th, 2009

Your waist-line may give a strong clue about your risk of dying from heart disease, researchers warned last night.

Weight and waist-line together can predict as many as 50 per cent of deaths from heart disease, according to a European study.

Dutch researchers used body mass index and measurement around the waist to define people as obese and overweight.

A waistline of 37 inches - 94cm - was defined as overweight while 40 inches - 102cm - was defined as obese in men. For women 80cm and 88cm were used.

Researchers studied more than 20,000 people for the findings published in the European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation.

The researchers said some 53 per cent of fatal heart attacks and up to 30 per cent of non-fatal heart attacks could be explained by people being overweight or obese.

This suggests the rate of death from heart disease would be halved if no-one was overweight or obese.

Researcher Ineke Van Dis, of the Netherlands Heart Foundation, said: "Throughout Western Europe - as in the Netherlands - there has been a decline in cardiovascular mortality in recent years, which is reflected in a prevalence shift from mortality to morbidity.

"What this study shows is the substantial effect which overweight and obesity have on cardiovascular disease, whether fatal or non-fatal. In the near future the impact of obesity on the burden of heart disease will be even greater.

"For consumer groups and our national heart foundations, these findings underline the need for policies and activities to prevent overweight in the general population."

Van Dis I, Kromhout D, Geleijnse M, et al. Body mass index and waist circumference predict both 10-year non-fatal and fatal cardiovascular disease risk in 20,000 Dutch men and women aged 20-65. Eur J Cardiovasc Prev Rehabil 2009; doi: 10.1097/HJR.0b013e328331dfc0.

Tags: Diet & Food | Europe | Fitness | Heart Health

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