To Your Health:

A Question of Numbers

By Nancy DiMarco, Ph.D.

Recently, I attended the annual Women and Heart Health Luncheon sponsored by the American Heart Association at the University of North Texas’ Gateway Center. I also was the co-chair for the health screenings that took place before the luncheon.

Putting the health screenings together made me aware of a lot of numbers many of us in the allied health fields take for granted, and yet, they are vitally important.

When I speak to my nutrition students, the majority of them know their total cholesterol concentration as well as their fasting glucose level. Most of them even know their blood pressure, and certainly all my exercise and sports nutrition students know their VO2 max - a measure of their fitness level.
But the vast majority of Americans do not know their numbers and they should.

Let’s explore some of the numbers everyone should know, such as body mass index or BMI. For the purposes of this column, I will focus on those values that pertain to obesity and disease.

The latest issue of the New England Journal of Medicine reports that in a massive study that collected data for more than 16 years and involved almost one million people, excess body weight accounted for 20 percent of the deaths in women and 14 percent of the deaths in men. All in all, 90,000 people died from cancer related to being overweight.

Why this happened is still unknown. But perhaps the body responds differently to excess hormones, such as estrogen in women, which is produced from excess body fat. Excess estrogen may increase the risk of cancers of the female reproductive system as well as the breast.

Eugenia Calle, who conducted the study, and her researchers also suggest that obesity may make cancers more difficult to diagnose and treat. Some patients won’t even fit into MRI or CAT scanners. In addition, the obese may not seek treatment because of embarrassment.

How can you tell if you're at additional risk for cancer or other diseases due to being overweight or obese? First, determine your body mass index (BMI).

BMI is a ratio of weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared. To easily calculate your BMI, visit www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/bmicalc.htm and simply enter your height and weight into the appropriate boxes. It will tell you if your BMI is low, in the recommend range or high.

Individuals with a high or very high BMI and percentage body fat are at increased risk for Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease and now, certain cancers.

In addition, if you have any of the following risk factors and are considered obese (with a BMI greater than or equal to 30), or those who are overweight (with a BMI of 25 to 29.9), the guidelines recommend losing weight. Even a small weight loss of just 10 percent of your current weight will help lower your risk of developing diseases associated with obesity.

The risk factors include:

• High blood pressure (hypertension)
  
• High LDL-cholesterol ("bad" cholesterol)
  
• Low HDL-cholesterol ("good" cholesterol)
  
• High triglycerides
  
• High blood glucose (sugar)
  
• Family history of premature heart disease
  
• Physical inactivity
  
• Cigarette smoking
  

“We’ve developed a culture where you have to work really hard to eat right and exercise. We’re kind of stacking the deck against ourselves,” said Calle. She also noted that societal attitudes about weight must change the way they have about smoking.

Being overweight in this society is not ok, and individuals must take responsibility to change their behaviors just like we altered our views about smoking. Perhaps this latest scare about cancer will make more people ready to make lasting changes that will have lifelong positive consequences.

Regular physical check-ups with your physician can certainly help in the long run to prevent many of the lifestyle diseases we are experiencing in this country. Knowing these physical indicators also can help individuals be more aware of risks and make the appropriate changes.

Dr. Nancy DiMarco is a research professor in the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, the nutrition coordinator for the Institute for Women's Health and coordinator of the master's program in Exercise and Sports Nutrition at Texas Woman's University. She can be reached at ndimarco@twu.edu.

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