Bigger Waist Today! Diabetes Tomorrow!

Is your waistline growing? So are the dangers! A bigger waist circumference (WC) increases the risk of diabetes, metabolic diseases, and death.

Waist circumference (WC) is linked to metabolic diseases like diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and mortality. However, the relationship between waist circumference and death can differ among different populations and has not been studied much in people with diabetes.

Bigger Waist, Greater Disease Burden

In this study, we explored the relationships between WC and both all-cause and cardiovascular mortalities among individuals with DM.

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The findings of the study are published in the journal Exploratory Research and Hypothesis in Medicine ().

Participants from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2003–2018 included 3,151 women and 3,473 men with DM who had baseline WC measurements. Survival data were collected from enrollment until December 31, 2019.

Cox proportional hazard models were adjusted for demographic features and other confounders. Restricted cubic spline curves and threshold effect analyses were performed separately for men and women. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to minimize reverse causality.

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Gender Differences in Waist Circumference and Death Risk

Among 6,624 participants with DM, 621 women and 871 men died during median follow-ups of 6.8 and 6.3 years, respectively. WC demonstrated a U-shaped association with all-cause and cardiovascular mortalities in women, and a J-shaped trend in men.

The optimal WC thresholds for minimizing mortality risk were 107.0 cm for women and 89.0 cm for men. For women, adjusted hazard ratios for all-cause mortality were 0.97 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.96–0.98, P < 0.001) for WC below 107.0 cm and 1.04 (95% CI: 1.02–1.05, P < 0.001) for WC above 107.0 cm.

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In men, the corresponding ratios were 0.94 (95% CI: 0.90–0.97, P < 0.001) for WC below 89.0 cm and 1.03 (95% CI: 1.02–1.05, P < 0.001) for WC above 89.0 cm.

WC showed a U-shaped association with all-cause and cardiovascular mortalities in women and a J-shaped association in men among U.S. adults with DM from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

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Further research is needed to explore the underlying mechanisms rather than promoting preconceived notions about an optimal WC.

Reference:

Association of Waist Circumference with All-cause and Cardiovascular Mortalities in Diabetes from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2003–2018 - (https://www.xiahepublishing.com/2472-0712/ERHM-2024-00400)

Source-Eurekalert