Severe obesity in childhood linked to higher risk of MS later in life
Lifestyle changes to lose body fat in childhood found not reduce this future risk
Severe obesity during childhood and adolescence more than triples the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), and losing weight through early lifestyle changes did not decrease the likelihood of MS, according to a nationwide study in Sweden.
Although the overall risk remained low, with 0.13% of people with pediatric obesity developing MS compared with 0.06% of people from the general population, the findings highlight “the importance of preventing high degree of obesity early in life,” researchers wrote.
Their study, “Pediatric obesity and the risk of multiple sclerosis: a nationwide prospective cohort study,” was published in the International Journal of Obesity.
Obesity associated with low-grade chronic inflammation throughout body
Obesity is associated with low-grade chronic inflammation throughout the body, which can lead to various metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and high blood pressure.
Emerging evidence suggests obesity during adolescence can increase the risk of MS, but the association between childhood obesity and MS is less clear. It’s also not known if the degree of obesity influences the risk of MS.
To know more, a team of researchers in Sweden examined data from the Swedish Childhood Obesity Treatment Register, which included 21,652 people, ages 2-19, who received treatment for childhood obesity.
Participants were included in the registry from 1997 to 2020 and were mainly treated with behavioral lifestyle modifications to manage their obesity, with no pharmacological treatment given. They were compared to a control group of 102,187 age- and sex-matched individuals from the general population.
People who developed MS over time were then identified through the Swedish National Patient Register. Those diagnosed with MS before 15 years of age or who had genetic disorders that cause obesity were excluded from the analysis.
As reported last year, a higher proportion of those who were obese in childhood or adolescence developed MS compared with the control group (0.13% vs. 0.06%) after a median follow-up of 5.6 years. Accordingly, pediatric obesity was associated with a 2.3 times higher risk of MS.
“The underlying mechanism may be attributed to obesity’s role in inducing a persistent, low-grade inflammatory state,” the team wrote.
Newly published data provided further details on how various factors, including age, sex, obesity severity, and obesity treatment, contribute to the relationship between childhood obesity and MS.
Obesity from ages 2-19 linked to increased MS risk later
Results showed obesity in both childhood (ages 2-9.9) and adolescence (ages 10-19) were associated with an increased risk of MS later in life. The risk of MS due to pediatric obesity was similar regardless of sex and age at the start of treatment.
The researchers then stratified patients by the severity of their obesity based on body mass index (BMI), a measure of body fat based on height and weight. Values of 30 and above reflect obesity, with low-risk (class I) obesity corresponding to a BMI between 30 and 34.5 and moderate-risk obesity (class II) to a BMI between 35 and 39.9.
Although no significant association was observed between class I obesity and MS risk, children and adolescents with more severe obesity (class II) were 3.1 times more likely to develop the neurodegenerative disease, “indicating a dose-response relationship,” the researchers wrote.
Notably, the age when obesity treatment began was not linked to MS later on, nor was its duration or response, among those with at least one year of treatment data.
“In the present study, modest weigh[t] loss after lifestyle behavioral treatment was not associated with increased risk of MS several year[s] later,” the team concluded. “Nevertheless, since obesity itself remains a significant factor contributing to MS risk …, prevention of high degree of obesity in childhood and adolescence is warranted.”
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