A new study published in The Lancet explores shifting mortality rates and mortality associations with body mass index (BMI) in England between 2004 and 2019. Study: Trends in all-cause and cause-specific mortality by BMI levels in England, 2004–2019: a population-based primary care records study . Image Credit: Ljupco Smokovski / Shutterstock.
com The prevalence of obesity tripled to 13% from 1975 to 2016. In 2019, obesity caused approximately five million deaths, most of which were due to non-communicable diseases (NCDs), including cardiometabolic disorders and cancer. Between 2007 and 2017, all-cause and NCD mortality rates were reduced by 14% and 7%, respectively, primarily because of declining cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality.
However, the 40% reduction in CVD deaths in the 2000s was followed by a sharp decline, resulting in annual reductions of less than 2%. The current study examines the role of obesity in these fluctuating mortality rates based on primary care records obtained between 2004 and 2019 from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink. Data from 880,683 individuals with one or more BMI measurements between 1999 and 2014 and subsequent follow-up visits were included in the analysis.
Over 25% of normal-weight and overweight individuals, as well as 20% of obese individuals, were from the highest socioeconomic quintile. Smokers and ex-smokers were over-represented in the normal weight and other two categories, respectively. Obese individuals had higher all-c.
