title: Relationships of age, menopause and central obesity on cardiovascular disease risk factors in Chinese women.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the inter-relationships of age- and menopause- related changes of general obesity and body fat distribution and their independent effects on cardiovascular risk factors.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study.
  
  
  METHODS
  One-hundred and thirty-six premenopausal and 193 postmenopausal Chinese women with body mass index (BMI) < 30 kg/m2.
  
  
  METHODS
  Anthropometric surrogates of general obesity (BMI, total body fat percentage) and central obesity (waist-to-hip ratio, centrality index) were measured. Blood pressure, 75 g oral glucose tolerance test, glycosylated hemoglobin A1c and lipid profiles were also measured.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Significant correlation coefficients between age, general obesity, central obesity and cardiovascular disease risk factors were noted. Through the menopausal transition, the BMI and total body fat percentage were increased significantly. After adjustments for age and BMI, the postmenopausal women showed higher android fat percentage, centrality index, glycosylated hemoglobin A1c, serum concentrations of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and atherogenic indices than the premenopausal women. In multiple stepwise regression models, age exerted independent effects on oral glucose tolerance test 2 h plasma glucose level, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol level, and LDL cholesterol. Menopause was an independent variable in relation to the changes of glycosylated hemoglobin A1c, total and LDL cholesterol levels, triglyceride levels and atherogenic indices. The centrality index was the major independent variable of all the cardiovascular disease risk factors, except total and LDL cholesterol level. However, the variation of total body fat percentage had no independent effect on any cardiovascular disease risk factors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Through the aging and menopausal effects, women will increase total body fat content, favoring the central body fat distribution. Age, menopause and central obesity were all independent and significant factors to the cardiovascular disease risk factors in Chinese women.
authors: Department of Family Medicine and Nuclear Medicine, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan.
authors: C J
authors: CJ
authors: Chang
authors: C H
authors: CH
authors: Wu
authors: W J
authors: WJ
authors: Yao
authors: Y C
authors: YC
authors: Yang
authors: J S
authors: JS
authors: Wu
authors: F H
authors: FH
authors: Lu
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis; D001794:Blood Pressure; D001823:Body Composition; D001824:Body Constitution; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D005951:Glucose Tolerance Test; D006442:Glycated Hemoglobin / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D008593:Menopause; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications*; D017698:Postmenopause; D017697:Premenopause; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D013624:Taiwan; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D002784:Cholesterol; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL; D006442:Glycated Hemoglobin; D014280:Triglycerides