Historically, people with a high body mass index (BMI) have been more likely to have high blood pressure and high levels of blood lipids than people of normal weight. Both increase the risk of a number of cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack and stroke.
But a recent study in the journal Lancet shows that the difference in blood pressure and harmful cholesterol has decreased or completely disappeared between people of normal weight and people with a high BMI.
It involves people between the ages of 40 and 79 in England, the United States, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Finland. Researchers examined blood pressure and cholesterol levels in almost a million people with obesity, overweight and normal BMI between 1990 and 2024.
The researchers behind the study explain the development with effective drugs used to lower harmful blood fats and blood pressure.
In people under 40 years of age, the study results suggest little or no difference in blood pressure or cholesterol between those who are obese and those who are of normal weight. The data also show that the use of cholesterol-lowering and blood pressure-lowering medications is low in this age group.
The researchers behind the study point out that although this is good news, it does not remove the fact that obesity and severe overweight pose a number of other health risks.
Having increased blood pressure increases the risk of stroke, heart attack, heart failure, kidney disease, dementia and impaired blood circulation in the legs, among other things.
High levels of harmful LDL cholesterol in the blood can contribute to atherosclerosis. This means that blood fats have been deposited in the walls of the blood vessels, causing them to become stiff and narrow.
In the long term, there is a risk of blood vessels becoming blocked. This can lead to various cardiovascular diseases such as angina, heart attack, stroke or angina in the legs.
Source: 1177
