cool health life 28

People with metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) are clinically obese in terms of their body mass index (BMI) (more than 30 kg/m2), but do not have metabolic complications that usually come with obesity, such as abnormal blood fats, poor blood sugar control or diabetes, and high blood pressure. Whether MHO is associated with excess risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) events is a subject of debate. Important limitations in the evidence to date include inconsistent definitions of metabolic health, inconsistent control for other factors (confounders), and small sample sizes. In this new study, the authors address these limitations in a large contemporary cohort , based on linked primary care electronic health records. The researchers used linked electronic health records from 1995 to 2015 in The Health Improvement Network (THIN) -- a large UK database of general practice records -- to assemble a cohort of 3.5 million individuals aged 18 years or older and initially free from CVD. To d...

Children of migrants to Chinese cities have lower rates of obesity than youngsters in more affluent established urban families -- probably because their grandparents are not around to over-feed them, a new study has found. Fewer opportunities for unhealthy snacking and less pressure for academic achievement, leading to more active play, also contribute to migrant children's lower obesity rates. Large-scale migration sees millions of Chinese families leave the countryside and settle in the country's biggest cities in search of economic prosperity. However, migrant children are still at risk of increasing obesity because, unlike youngsters from affluent families, lack of parental supervision after school and unsafe neighbourhoods cause them to eat unhealthily and limit opportunities for active play. Researchers at the University of Birmingham interviewed parents, grandparents and teachers at schools in the city of Guangzhou, in southern China. Their study -- published...