Obesity increase risk of chronic kidney failure

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

A survey of patients with chronic kidney failure reveals that excess weight is a risk factor.
There are many different health risks associated with overweight and obesity. Now researchers at Uppsala University, Sweden, reveal that chronic renal failure (CRF) is one of them. They looked at 926 patients with moderate CRF and compared them with 988 patients with normal kidney function.

Those who were obese - with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more - had three to four times the risk of CRF. This association was greatest for those cases where diabetes was a factor in CRF. However, the link held for all kinds of CRF. For women, morbid obesity - with a BMI of 35 or more - was also a strong risk factor. The risk of CRF was also increased two fold for those who were overweight, but not obese - that is, with a BMI of 25 to 30. Rates of CRF are increasing around the world - this new study shows that obesity, also on the increase, is an important (and reversible) risk factor.

Source
Journal of the American Society of Nephrology June 2006

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