Previous research has shown that high BMI and poor fitness in adolescence pose a risk of developing cardiovascular disease and cancer as an adult.
Now a new study shows that it may also be linked to the risk of developing serious bacterial infections.
The study, published in the Journal of Internal Medicine, is based on data on nearly a million Swedish men. Through national registers such as the conscription register, the patient register and the cause of death register, the researchers have been able to follow them for more than three decades.
“Important for public health”
The results show that men who had a high BMI or poorer fitness when they were drafted were more likely to suffer from serious infections such as pneumonia and sepsis later in life.
Knowing the risk factors that you can actually do something about is important for the individual but also for public health in general and from a socio-economic perspective, says Birger Sourander, doctoral student at the University of Gothenburg and ST physician at Sahlgrenska University Hospital.
As it stands today, overweight and obesity are increasing in society, as is physical inactivity. But with political instruments and other initiatives, this trend can be reversed.
Three times as common
Among people with obesity, that is, a BMI of 30 or more, it was more than three times as common to suffer from sepsis compared to those who had what is classified as low normal weight, a BMI of between 18.5 and 19.9.
But the risk of contracting an infection was already elevated at high normal weight, a BMI of 22.5–25, and then rose gradually with increased BMI and worsening fitness.
The analyses have been adjusted for factors such as socioeconomic background, asthma and muscle strength to provide as accurate a picture as possible. As no women were included in the study, it is not possible to say with certainty that the results also apply to them.
"Previous studies have shown significant gender differences in obesity and bacterial infections," the study states.
