Body Mass Index (BMI) News and Research

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Body Mass Index (BMI) is a measure that relates body weight to height. BMI is sometimes used to measure total body fat and whether a person is a healthy weight. Excess body fat is linked to an increased risk of some diseases including heart disease and some cancers.

Being underweight in middle age associated with increased dementia risk

Middle-aged people who are underweight (with a Body Mass Index [BMI] less than 20 kg/m2) are a third more likely to develop dementia than people of similar age with a healthy BMI, according to new research published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology journal.

10 Apr 2015

New study analyses physical, psychological consequences of bariatric surgery

Bariatric surgery, or reduction of gastric capacity, is one of the longer lasting options to achieve considerable weight loss in obese people. A Spanish researcher has participated in a study that confirms that the effects of this relatively complex medical surgery are not only physical, but also psychological.

8 Apr 2015

Younger patients can benefit from ACL surgery

A new study appearing in the April issue of The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery (JBJS), found that most patients who underwent surgery to repair and rebuild an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear, showed significant improvement in physical function at two years, which continued for at least six years following surgery.

7 Apr 2015

CVD risk assessment still important in severely obese adolescents

Researchers report a dose–response relationship between body mass index and cardiovascular risk even in severely obese adolescents, making its assessment important to limit further disease progression.

1 Apr 2015

Workplace wellness programs can help people lose weight

A new study shows that workplace wellness programs can be effective in helping people lose weight by providing healthier food choices and increasing opportunities for physical activity, particularly if these efforts are designed with the input and active participation of employees.

30 Mar 2015

Previous joint pain, diabetes and overall health status may predict arthritis pain

Diabetes and previous joint pain, along with a patient's overall physical health status, may predict arthritis pain with nearly 100 percent accuracy, in new research presented today at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS).

24 Mar 2015

Diet based on UK health guidelines could reduce CVD risk

Men and women who adapt their daily diet to meet current UK dietary guidelines could reduce their risk of a heart attack or a stroke by up to a third, according to a new study by King's College London.

18 Mar 2015

Increasing diet soda intake linked to greater abdominal obesity in older adults

A new study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society shows that increasing diet soda intake is directly linked to greater abdominal obesity in adults 65 years of age and older. Findings raise concerns about the safety of chronic diet soda consumption, which may increase belly fat and contribute to greater risk of metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular diseases.

17 Mar 2015

No adulthood metabolic consequences of central precocious puberty

Researchers have found that girls with central precocious puberty have similar metabolic and general health to other women when they reach young to middle adulthood.

13 Mar 2015

Physical activity may protect older people from effects of brain damage

Older people who are physically active may be protecting themselves from the effects of small areas of brain damage that can affect their movement abilities, according to a new study published in the March 11, 2015, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

12 Mar 2015

CHOP researchers find link between infancy BMI and childhood obesity

Body mass index (BMI) during infancy may help to predict if a child will be obese by age four. In a study focused on the infant BMI-childhood obesity relationship in a cohort with a majority of African-American children, researchers from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia say that a better understanding of infant growth patterns may lead to more effective early efforts at obesity prevention.

12 Mar 2015

Study finds significant links between depression, poor dietary quality and high BMI

In a study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, researchers from the RAND Corporation report that for people receiving food assistance there are significant links between depression, poor dietary quality, and high body mass index (BMI).

10 Mar 2015

Obese older adults have higher rate of hospitalizations, ER admissions

Obesity is associated with substantial increases in older adults' hospitalizations, emergency room admissions and use of outpatient health care services, according to a new study of 172,866 Medicare Advantage members throughout the U.S.

9 Mar 2015

Sleep apnea prevalent in obese, pregnant Asian women with gestational diabetes

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is prevalent in obese, pregnant Asian women with gestational diabetes, even when their diabetes is controlled by diet, a new study from Thailand finds.

9 Mar 2015

Gastrointestinal colonization with methanogens increases difficulty of losing weight after bariatric surgery

A new study finds that after weight loss surgery, people whose breath has high concentrations of both hydrogen and methane gases have a lower percentage weight loss than other bariatric surgery patients do. The study results will be presented Thursday at the Endocrine Society's 97th annual meeting in San Diego.

9 Mar 2015

Study shows strong link between adolescent obesity and high blood pressure

A recent study published in the American Journal of Hypertension has found that body mass index (BMI) in healthy adolescents has a statistically significant association with both systolic blood pressures (SBP) and diastolic blood pressures (DBP), and highlights the significance of the global trend of rapidly increasing adolescent obesity.

4 Mar 2015

Study finds that BMI in healthy adolescents has significant association with blood pressures

3 Mar 2015

FAA to issue new obstructive sleep apnea guidance for aviation medical examiners

The Federal Aviation Administration has announced that it will issue new guidance for aviation medical examiners (AMEs) regarding the screening and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in commercial pilots. The new guidance, which hopes to treat pilots fairly while at the same time increasing aviation safety, was created and approved with input from the industry, Congress, and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

28 Feb 2015

Frailty assessment test can accurately predict complications after major operation

Frailty has been used to predict how well a patient may recover from a major operation. Because frailty assessments are not routinely utilized in busy surgical practices, surgeons at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta have discovered that a short, approximately one-minute assessment can accurately determine how likely a patient is to have complications after an operation.

26 Feb 2015

New Penn Medicine study reveals how sleep deprivation increases intake of fat

Experts have warned for years that insufficient sleep can lead to weight gain. A new Penn Medicine study found that not only do we consume more food following a night of total sleep deprivation, but we also we consume more fat and less carbohydrates and a region of the brain known as the salience network is what may lead us to eat more fat.

15 Feb 2015