Obese young male adults are at high risk for developing medical problems: a community survey of 8080 in Taiwan

Abstract

Background

Little research effort has been put in to examining the impact of obesity on the young male population.

Method

A total of 8080 young male adults, aged 19–23 years, were screened by means of a physical examination. Hypertension, abnormal liver function, proteinuria, glucosuria, anemia and leukocytosis were defined as medical problems. The main outcome evaluated among the subjects was the number answering in the affirmative (% yes) for medical problems. All subjects were assigned to a BMI group, which was based on the criteria for the Asian and Pacific region (obesity class II = BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²; obesity class I = 25–29.9 kg/m²), for further assessment and comparison.

Results

The prevalence of obesity classes I and II was 18.0% and 7.1%, respectively, among the subjects. The obesity class II group had a higher odds ratio for developing hypertension (4.0–6.0 times), abnormal liver function (15.6–23.2 times), glucosuria (1.9–7.8 times) and leukocytosis (3.7–6.0 times); while the obesity class I group had a higher odds ratio for developing hypertension (1.8–2.5 times), abnormal liver function (4.9–6.4 times), glucosuria (1.7–5.3 times) and leukocytosis (0.8–1.4 times) than the reference group (BMI < 23 kg/m²).

Conclusion

Our data has reconfirmed the close association between obesity and medical problems in male adults aged 19–23 years, even if they were in a healthy state.