The association between body fat mass and diabetes mellitus, hypertension and dyslipidemia in an elderly population in China

Abstract

Objective To identify the threshold of percentage of body fat (BF%) associated with diabetes mellitus, hypertension and dyslipidemia in an elderly Chinese population. Methods An individual was considered as a subject if they exhibited any one of the three cardiovascular disease risk factors: diabetes mellitus, hypertension or dyslipidemia. A total of 1 140 subjects were recruited from the Physical Examination Center of Tianjin Hospital, China (male 511, female 629, aged ≥60 years). Questionnaire interview, physical examination, body composition measurement, blood biochemistry measurement, muscle strength measurement and other measurements were performed for each subject. Receiver operating curves (ROC) were created to determine the optimal percentage of body fat cutoff points, with the presence of diabetes mellitus, hypertension or dyslipidemia as outcome variable. Results The percentage of subjects with at least one of the following conditions (diabetes mellitus, hypertension or dyslipidemia) was 62.8% for men and 73.9% for women. Increased percentage of body fat was associated with an increased occurrence of diabetes mellitus, hypertension or dyslipidemia in the elderly, particularly among women. The ROC curve shows that the threshold of fat percentage in men and women was 28.2% and 36.6%, respectively. Conclusion The risks of diabetes, hypertension and dyslipidemia is closely related to elevated body fat mass in the elderly. The percentage of body fat mass is an important indicator of obesity, threshold of BF % can provide reference for clinical obesity intervention in elderly patients. It also can provide reference for the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease. Key words: Aged; Diabetes mellitus; Hypertension; Dyslipidemias; Percentage of body fat