The relationship between altitude and BMI varies across low- and middle-income countries.
Am J Hum Biol
; 36(5): e24036, 2024 05.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38213006
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES:
Studies suggest that living at high altitude decreases obesity risk, but this research is limited to single-country analyses. We examine the relationship between altitude and body mass index (BMI) among women living in a diverse sample of low- and middle-income countries. MATERIALS ANDMETHODS:
Using Demographic and Health Survey data from 1 583 456 reproductive age women (20-49 years) in 54 countries, we fit regression models predicting BMI and obesity by altitude controlling for a range of demographic factors-age, parity, breastfeeding status, wealth, and education.RESULTS:
A mixed-effects model with country-level random intercepts and slopes predicts an overall -0.162 kg/m2 (95% CI -0.220, -0.104) reduction in BMI and lower odds of obesity (OR 0.90, 95% CI 0.87, 0.95) for every 200 m increase in altitude. However, countries vary dramatically in whether they exhibit a negative or positive association between altitude and BMI (34 countries negative, 20 positive). Mixed findings also arise when examining odds of obesity.DISCUSSION:
We show that past findings of declining obesity risk with altitude are not universal. Increasing altitude predicts slightly lower BMIs at the global level, but the relationship within individual countries varies in both strength and direction.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Índice de Massa Corporal
/
Países em Desenvolvimento
/
Altitude
/
Obesidade
Tipo de estudo:
Prognostic_studies
Limite:
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Middle aged
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article