[Obesity and mortality. Italian epidemiologic data].
The relationship of indicators of obesity, such as the body mass index (BMI) and the skinfold thickness in some areas (SKIN) to all causes mortality have been analyzed in three italian epidemiological studies. They are the Seven Countries Study--italian areas conducted on 2480 men at entry and followed-up for 25 years; the Brisighella study conducted on 1123 men and 1100 women aged 30-69 and followed-up for 15 years; and the NFR study in Rome conducted on 3395 men aged 46-66 and followed-up of 6.5 years. The univariate analysis concerning the BMI for various age groups, the two sexes, and variable periods of follow-up has almost systematically showed a parabolic inverted J shaped relationship with minimal levels of risk for BMI values of 27-29 units. However this was not the case for the women group and for the oldest men where no clear relationship was found. The analysis concerning the SKIN provided similar but less clear-cut results. The multivariate analysis has confirmed the parabolic relationship of BMI to all causes mortality even in the presence of other 4-5 covariates. The left branch of risk is higher than the right one and its slope could be reduced, although not completely, by the exclusion of heavy smokers, of those who died within the first 5 years of follow-up, of those who were carriers of severe diseases at entry examination.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Menotti
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Laboratorio di Epidemiologia e Biostatistica, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Roma.
Descovich
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GC
Lanti
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Seccareccia
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Dormi
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D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002423:Cause of Death; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications / Q000401:mortality*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012307:Risk Factors
Obesità e mortalità. Dati epidemiologici italiani.