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Taking Full Measure of Obesity

A group of researchers from University of Illinois and Harvard University sought to compare BMI to WC and WHR as a means to predict type 2 diabetes. The study group included 27,270 participants in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, a prospective cohort study begun in 1986.

Baseline measurements were recorded for all participants when they enrolled in the study. During 13 years of follow-up, researchers counted 884 new cases of type 2 diabetes. Analysis showed that participants with the greatest WC had a risk of type 2 diabetes 12 times that of those with the smallest WC. Those with the highest WHR had seven times the risk of type 2 diabetes of those with the smallest ratio, and those with the highest BMI had eight times the risk of diabetes of those with the smallest BMI.

In general, the researchers found that both overall obesity, measured by BMI, and abdominal obesity, measured with WC and WHR, are strong and independent predictors of type 2 diabetes. WC proved a better predictor than WHR. They conclude that both BMI and WC should be measured whenever possible to help determine health risk.

According to the analysis, the cutoff of 102 centimeters (40 inches) recommended by the National Institutes of Health and the North American Association for the Study of Obesity pmay be too high. An elevated risk of type 2 diabetes may be present in somebody with a smaller waist circumference.

Wang Y, Rimm EB, Stampfer MJ, et al.: Comparison of abdominal adiposity and overall obesity in predicting risk of type 2 diabetes among men. Am J Clin Nutr 81:555–563, 2005.[Abstract/Free Full Text]

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