Objective: The objective was to examine the percentage and severity of obesity and some common biochemical coronary heart disease (CHD) risk factors in a sample of healthy Kuwaiti adult males ! 45 y of age. We also sought to determine the percentage of males at increased risk due to the presence of multiple CHD risk factors. Design: The study was a cross-sectional study. Setting: The study was conducted in all men who underwent a mandatory job related physical examination or who sought to obtain retirement benefits. Subjects: A total of 740 healthy Kuwaiti males between the ages of 45 to 80 y. Results: In all, 37% of the men were obese, 26% had elevated glucose values and 52% had elevated or high cholesterol levels. Some had multiple risk factors for CHD, including age ! 45 y, obesity, male gender, hyperglycemia and hypercholesterolemia. Blood glucose values increased consistently from younger (45 -54 y) to older age groups (55 -64 and ! 65 y). Blood glucose values varied inversely with education level. Conclusions: In societies with relatively uniform income levels, educational level may be a better indicator of chronic disease risk than income per se. These results, showing a high percentage of men with several risk factors and high mean values, suggesting more severe risk, suggest that immediate action should be taken to develop a public health intervention strategy to educate Kuwaiti men to become aware of the causes and correlates of CHD and how to decrease their risk for CHD and heart attack, the leading cause of death in Kuwait.
Obesity has been shown to be a serious health risk and is associated with a wide range of comorbid conditions, including diabetes mellitus, coronary heart disease (CHD), gall bladder disease, hypertension, osteoarthritis, and certain cancers. Studies in Kuwait and other Gulf States indicate that obesity is prevalent and may be increasing. Previous studies in Kuwait have mostly focused on the epidemiology of overweight and obesity in children, adolescents, and young adults. Relatively less is known about the prevalence of overweight and obesity and its correlates in older adults for whom obesity may be more closely related to CHD risk. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of overweight and obesity in 9755 adult men and women and to determine the relationship of weight to other risk factors for chronic disease. For the first time we examine a sample of older Kuwaitis to explore the relationship between high BMI, hypercholesterolemia and hyperglycemia. One-third of adult Kuwaitis are obese (BMI > 30 kg/m2), 4.7% of Kuwaiti females have severe obesity (BMI > 40 kg/m2). BMI, cholesterol, and glucose values increase with age across the life span. Older Kuwaitis have a greater constellation of risk factors for chronic diseases. The results of a multiple linear regression model in which cholesterol values were studied, controlling for age, BMI, blood glucose, and sex revealed that age, BMI and sex were significant predictors of cholesterol values. These results indicate that actions to reduce obesity, hypercholesterolemia, and hyperglycemia are needed.
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