ScienceDaily (Feb. 24, 2010) — The adverse affects of being
overweight are not limited to physical function but also extend to
neurological function, according to research in the latest issue of The
Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological and Medical Sciences.
The publication presents a collection of ten articles highlighting new
findings related to obesity in older persons.
"One of the unanticipated consequences of improved medical management of
cardiovascular disease is that many obese individuals reach old age," said
Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences Editor Luigi Ferrucci, MD, PhD, of
the National Institute on Aging. "We need a better understanding of the
causes and consequences of obesity in older individuals -- especially when
obesity is associated with sarcopenia."
A study headed by Anna Dahl, MS, of Sweden's Jönköping University, found
that individuals with higher midlife body mass index (BMI) scores had
significantly lower general cognitive ability and significantly steeper
decline than their thinner counterparts over time. These statistics were
compiled from a study of Swedish twins that took place over the course of
nearly 40 years, from 1963 to 2002; the results were the same for both men
and women.
Other studies reported in the journal show that obesity appears particularly
threatening in the presence of other health problems, such as poor muscle
strength and depression.
Similarly, changes in weight also signify declines in overall health. A team
of researchers led by Alice M. Arnold, PhD, of the University of Washington,
Seattle, found that such fluctuations are significant indicators of future
physical limitations and mortality in the elderly. Arnold and her colleagues
used data from the Cardiovacscular Health Study, which included information
from over 3,000 individuals aged 65 and older from 1992 to 1999. They
discovered that a history of cyclically losing and gaining weight increased
a person's chance of having difficulty with activities of daily living --
bathing, dressing, eating, etc. -- by 28 percent.
Source : ScienceDaily
