A recent study shows that obese people with unfavorable muscle composition are up to three times more likely to die.
- Unfavorable muscle composition is common among obese people, according to a new study.
- In the case of obesity, having low muscle volume and high muscle fat is associated with three times the risk of dying.
- Gender, age, type 2 diabetes and smoking were also linked to a higher risk of early death.
Poor muscle health is common in patients with obesity and is associated with a higher risk of early death. This was recently revealed by researchers from AMRA Medical, a health IT company located in Linköping (Sweden) during the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) which is currently taking place in Venice (Italy).
The muscles of obese patients “are generally relatively weaker”
To reach this conclusion, scientists conducted a study in which they analyzed the scans of 56,109 British adults whose data was available in the UK Biobank. Next, the team used AMRA Researcher, software that provides body composition measurements from MRI scans. Muscle volume (i.e. the amount of muscle) and muscle fat (indicating the quality of the muscle) were quantified and a personalized muscle volume score (an indication of how their muscle volume compares to the average for their gender and their body size) was calculated.
In the work, participants were divided into four groups based on whether they had normal muscle composition, high muscle fat only, low muscle volume only, or unfavorable muscle composition (both high muscle fat and low muscle volume). In total, 9,840 volunteers were obese. Among them, 2,001 patients presented an unfavorable muscle composition. “Research has shown that although obese people have greater muscle mass, their muscles are, in general, relatively weaker. They also have lower muscle quality, as well as reduced mobility and function.”said Jennifer Lingelead author of the study.
Obesity: 3 times more likely to die due to unfavorable muscle composition
During follow-up of approximately four years, 174 people died. The most common causes of death were ischemic diseases and hypertensive diseases. According to the results, having low muscle volume or high muscle fat alone was not significantly associated with a higher risk of death. In contrast, participants with unfavorable muscle composition were three times more likely to die than those with normal muscle composition.
According to the team, the link between poor muscle health and all-cause mortality remained high when strength, other diseases, such as cancer or type 2 diabetes, and lifestyle factors, such as smoking, alcohol consumption and physical activity, were taken into account. “In this fully adjusted model, unfavorable muscle composition was associated with a 70% higher risk of early death.”
Faced with these results, the authors highlighted the importance of assessing the amount of fat in muscles, as well as muscle volume, when assessing muscle health in obese patients. Another tip: determine whether medications for significant or rapid weight loss cause excessive muscle loss or deteriorate muscle quality in order to treat obesity more safely.
