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A prospective study of weight change and systemic inflammation over 9 y^1,2,3

¹ From the Division of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom (AWF, CG, SAL, TMM, JRB), and the Department of Clinical Chemistry, Nottingham City Hospital, Nottingham, United Kingdom (SJ)

Background: An increase in weight is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and cancer. This increased risk may be mediated by inflammation, but no long-term data are available on the effect of weight gain on systemic inflammation.

Objective: We tested the hypothesis that weight gain is associated with an increase in systemic inflammation during a 9-y period.

Design: In 1991 data on body weight and a blood sample were collected from a random sample of 2425 randomly selected adults from a community-based cohort in Nottingham, United Kingdom. In 2000, these measures were repeated in 1301 of these participants. The main outcome measure was change in systemic inflammation as measured by serum C-reactive protein (CRP) from the 1222 participants who provided paired samples.

Results: The mean change in weight from 1991 to 2000 was 2.9 kg (95% CI: 2.6, 3.2 kg). The geometric mean of CRP in 1991 was 1.22 mg/L (95% CI: 0.03, 125.0 mg/L), and it increased to 1.76 mg/L (95% CI: 0.09, 62.0 mg/L) in 2000 (P < 0.001). A linear association was observed between increase in weight and serum CRP, with a 1-kg increment in weight being associated with an additional increase in CRP of 0.09 mg/L (95% CI: 0.02, 0.16 mg/L) during this time period.

Conclusion: During a 9-y period, an increase in weight is associated with an increase in systemic inflammation. This provides a mechanism that may explain some of the previously reported association of weight gain with an increased risk of both cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Key Words: Inflammation • obesity • weight