HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (Publish Ahead of Print[PDF]) All Versions of this Article: 89/4/1213    most recent ajcn.2008.26698v1 Purchase Article View Shopping Cart Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Flegal, K. M Articles by Graubard, B. I Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Flegal, K. M Articles by Graubard, B. I Agricola Articles by Flegal, K. M Articles by Graubard, B. I

Estimates of excess deaths associated with body mass index and other anthropometric variables^1,2,3

¹ From the National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hyattsville, MD (KMF), and the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD (BIG).

² The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Cancer Institute.

³ Reprints not available. Address correspondence to KM Flegal, National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 3311 Toledo Road, Room 4201, Hyattsville, MD 20782. E-mail: kflegal{at}cdc.gov.

ABSTRACT

Background: Estimates of excess mortality associated with body mass index (BMI; in kg/m²) have been calculated for the US population.

Objective: The objective of this article is to compare the excess mortality associated with BMI levels to the excess mortality associated with other anthropometric variables.

Design: For the 1988–1994 Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey estimates of excess deaths were calculated for standard BMI levels and for comparable levels of percentage body fat, waist circumference, hip and arm circumferences, waist:hip ratio, the sum of 4 skinfold thicknesses, and waist:stature ratio. The outcome measure is the percentage of deaths in the full sample in excess of those predicted for the reference category.

Results: For the level equivalent to BMI <18.5, estimates of excess deaths ranged from 0.3% for waist:hip ratio to 2.4% for percentage body fat. All except waist circumference, waist:hip ratio, and waist:stature ratio were significantly greater than zero (P < 0.05). For the level equivalent to BMI 25–<30, the percentage of excess deaths was 0.1% for percentage body fat and negative for all other variables; estimates were significantly below zero only for circumferences and waist:stature ratio. For the level equivalent to BMI 30, estimates ranged from –1.7% for waist circumference to 1.5% for percentage of fat; none were significantly different from zero. Estimates for all-cause mortality, obesity-related causes of death, and other causes of death showed no statistically significant or systematic differences between BMI and other variables.

Conclusion: In this population-based study, attributable fractions of deaths were similar across measures.

Received for publication July 29, 2008. Accepted for publication November 17, 2008.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				S. C Moore Waist versus weight--which matters more for mortality? Am. J. Clinical Nutrition, April 1, 2009; 89(4): 1003 - 1004. [Full Text] [PDF]