Body Mass Index News and Research

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Prevalence of overweight increased in children aged two to four years from low-income families

The prevalence of overweight increased from 1989 to 2000 in children aged two to four years from low-income families, according to an article in the December issue of The Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

6 Dec 2004

Researchers step closer to cure for common childhood cancer

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a malignant disease caused by the abnormal growth and development of white blood cells (WBC) in the bone marrow and blood. ALL is the most common cancer occurring in children with an annual rate of approximately 30 to 40 new cases per million.

5 Dec 2004

Red meat consumption is an independent risk factor in the development of inflammatory arthritis

A chronic inflammatory disease of the immune system, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has been linked to a combination of genetic and environmental factors.

2 Dec 2004

Benefits of weight loss may depend on alignment of affected leg, study suggests

A painful and sometimes crippling disease characterized by progressive cartilage loss, osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee affects an estimated 6 percent of adults over age 30.

2 Dec 2004

Low testosterone production appears to be a common complication of type 2 diabetes in men

Moreover, results of the investigation show that this condition, known clinically as hypogonadism, is caused not by a defect in the testes, where testosterone is produced, but by improper functioning of the pituitary gland, which controls production of testosterone, or of the hypothalamus, the region of the brain that controls the pituitary.

29 Nov 2004

Elevated BMI may not increase risk of death among men with heart attack or stroke

BMI, or body mass index, is considered an indicator of both mortality and heart attack risk among middle-aged and older men free of major diseases. However, the impact of BMI on mortality in men who have already had a heart attack or stroke has not been clearly established.

29 Nov 2004

Weight gain beginning in childhood can lead to an enlarged heart

Weight gain beginning in childhood can lead to an enlarged heart by early adulthood, researchers reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

24 Nov 2004

Obesity could increase a person’s risk for atrial fibrillation

New research indicates that being obese could increase a person’s risk for atrial fibrillation, the most common irregular heart rhythm, by 50 percent, according to work published in the November 24 issue of JAMA.

24 Nov 2004

Risk of a blocked vessel stroke increases nearly twofold in young women with a history of stroke

Young women with a family history of stroke in their parents or siblings may be at increased risk for stroke themselves, according to a new report.

23 Nov 2004

Being overweight or obese significantly impairs a persons' sex life

Obese people report sexual problems such as lack of desire, lack of enjoyment, avoiding sex and performance difficulty at a much higher rate than people of normal weight – in some cases, they are 25 times more likely to report problems, according to the Duke study.

16 Nov 2004

Obese and overweight men spend 3.5 times more on prescription drugs than normal-weight men

As middle-aged men’s weight goes up, so do their monthly costs for prescription drugs to treat heart disease risk factors and weight-related conditions, according to research presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2004.

8 Nov 2004

Obesity could more than double an older woman's risk of acute myelogenous leukemia

A study from the University of Minnesota Cancer Center indicates that overweight and obesity could more than double an older woman's risk of acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), an often fatal cancer of the bone marrow and blood.

8 Nov 2004

Labor lasts longer for overweight or obese women

Pregnant women who are overweight or obese progress through labor more slowly than do normal weight women, according to a study by researchers at the University of North Carolina and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health.

2 Nov 2004

Symptoms of heartburn and GERD are highly prevalent among obese patients

Overall, heartburn and or acid regurgitation were found among 75 percent of the morbidly obese patients, while 23 percent experienced difficulty swallowing (dysphagia) and 34 percent experienced asthma symptoms.

1 Nov 2004

Obese women at greater risk of colorectal cancer

New study findings show a high body mass index (BMI) among women is a more significant risk factor for colorectal neoplasia than for men.

1 Nov 2004

Adult men and women are roughly an inch taller than they were in 1960

Adult men and women are roughly an inch taller than they were in 1960, but are nearly 25 pounds heavier on average as well, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

29 Oct 2004

Obese patients have higher health care costs

Compared to nonobese persons, obese patients had higher average health care costs over a one-year period, according to an article in the October 25 issue of The Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

25 Oct 2004

Study into ageing yields wealth of data

Any long-term study that follows people in their old age is bound to lose numbers because of deaths among its subjects, but the Australian Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ALSA) and many of its participants are still going strong.

19 Oct 2004

Weight loss surgery reduces components of metabolic syndrome in obese patients

Obese patients who underwent surgical treatment for weight loss had significant reductions in the components of the metabolic syndrome one year after surgery, according to an article in the October issue of The Archives of Surgery.

18 Oct 2004

The prevalence of Helicobacter pylori is high among patients about to undergo weight loss surgery

The prevalence of Helicobacter pylori (a type of bacteria associated with gastrointestinal disorders) is high among patients about to undergo weight loss surgery, and treatment to eradicate the bacterial infection before surgery may be beneficial, according to an article in the October issue of The Archives of Surgery.