Obesity described as a significant risk factor for serious COVID-19 infection

Apr, 2021 - By SMI

Scientists have found obesity as a major risk factor in case of COVID-19 which may lead to hospitalization or death.

According to a recent study from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 75% of people with COVID-19 who presented at a hospital were overweight or obese. The results add to a growing body of evidence that suggests disease seriousness is linked to an increase in Body Mass Index (BMI). Epidemiologists have found a connection between weight of the body and COVID-19 severity since the beginning of the pandemic. Obesity has been related to higher number of hospitalization and death, which is probably unsurprising.

Obesity, after all, is a widespread metabolic disorder that is often related to heart disease and diabetes, two other disorders that greatly increase one's risk of suffering serious consequences. Moreover, many studies are showing the seriousness of the risk of having high BMI and COVID-19. In reality, being overweight could be the most severe factor that leads to COVID-19 death and hospitalization, aside from age. The new CDC study looked at 148,494 adults in the United States who were diagnosed with COVID-19 between March and December of 2020. Overweight or obese patients accounted for 79.1% of the patients.

Those with a BMI of 23 to 25 (near the upper end of the safe range) had the lowest risk of hospitalization or death, according to the report. Patients who were underweight, with a BMI of around 15, were 20% more likely than those who were healthy weight to be hospitalized for COVID-19. So, it can be said that other than age, high BMI is the most dangerous factor leading to death or hospitalization in the case of COVID-19. The connection between BMI and COVID-19 will become clearer as more data is collected by researchers around the world. Despite this, a year after the global pandemic, the evidence clearly indicates that becoming overweight or obese increases the risk of serious disease.