Obesity is a worldwide issue. Obesity rates have more than quadrupled globally since 1975. Expanding waistlines are notably common in the United States, where more than four out of every ten persons fulfil the criteria for obesity. While there are many variables contributing to this alarming trend, a recent study reveals that air pollution may be another factor pushing the scales toward obesity – at least for certain women.
Obesity in middle-aged women
According to researchers at the University of Michigan, middle-aged women exposed to pollution are more likely to acquire weight and develop a higher BMI, a greater waist circumference, and more body fat. According to the study’s authors, a group of older, middle-aged women who were exposed to air pollution for an extended period of time gained more weight.
Women in their late 40s and early 50s who were exposed to air pollution for an extended period of time — specifically, higher levels of fine particles, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone — had a bigger body size and composition measures, according to first study author Xin Wang, an epidemiology research investigator at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, in a university release.
Facts and research
These findings are based on data from the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation, which included 1,654 Caucasian, Black, Chinese, and Japanese women. Between 2000 and 2008, researchers followed all of the subjects whose baseline median age was close to 50.
Finally, the UM team observed that exposure to air pollution was associated with higher body fat, higher percentage fat, and poorer lean mass in midlife women. Body fat, for example, increased by 4.5 percent (roughly 2.6 pounds). The researchers also made certain to investigate the effects of air pollution and physical exercise on body composition.
What could help with obesity in women?
Indeed, researchers discovered that engaging in a lot of physical activity (based on the frequency, duration, and felt physical intensity of more than 60 activities) was an efficient approach to reduce and maybe even counteract air pollution exposure.
Wang cautions, however, that because this study only involved middle-aged women, the findings should not be extrapolated to men or women of other ages.
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