Skip to main content
PMC home page
Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health logoLink to Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
. 1996 Aug;50(4):408–414. doi: 10.1136/jech.50.4.408

Body size and mortality in women: a 29 year follow up of 12,000 pregnant women in northern Finland.

E Läärä 1, P Rantakallio 1
PMCID: PMC1060311  PMID: 8882224

Abstract

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between body height, body mass index (BMI), and mortality in fertile women of childbearing age. DESIGN: A prospective cohort study with a 29 year mortality follow up. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: A cohort of women (n = 11,997) expected to deliver during 1966 in two northern provinces of Finland. Data on height and pre-pregnancy weight, collected with those on sociodemographic characteristics and smoking by questionnaire at the third trimester, were provided by 91% of the participants. Follow up for mortality using national registries was from delivery until the end of 1994. MAIN RESULTS: Height had a 'U' shaped association with total mortality over the whole follow up time. In women who were shorter than average, the death rate from cardiovascular diseases was increased and in taller women this was true for tumours. Compared with the women of 'normal weight' (BMI 21 to < 25 kg/m2), the obese subjects (BMI at least 29) did not have increased mortality during the first 20 years, but had a relative risk of 1.7 during the final nine years of follow up, primarily as a result of cardiovascular diseases. The lean women (BMI < 21) experienced a similar rate overall, but moderately overweight women (BMI 25 to < 29) had a consistently lower mortality than women of normal weight. CONCLUSIONS: Among fertile women of childbearing age, both the short and tall seem to have an increased total mortality compared with those of average body height, resulting from opposite trends in major causes of death. Obesity is associated with raised long term total mortality.

Full text

PDF
408

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Andres R., Muller D. C., Sorkin J. D. Long-term effects of change in body weight on all-cause mortality. A review. Ann Intern Med. 1993 Oct 1;119(7 Pt 2):737–743. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-119-7_part_2-199310011-00022. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. D'Avanzo B., La Vecchia C., Negri E. Height and the risk of acute myocardial infarction in Italian women. Soc Sci Med. 1994 Jan;38(1):193–196. doi: 10.1016/0277-9536(94)90315-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Garrow J. S. Should obesity be treated? Treatment is necessary. BMJ. 1994 Sep 10;309(6955):654–655. doi: 10.1136/bmj.309.6955.654. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Grodstein F., Goldman M. B., Cramer D. W. Body mass index and ovulatory infertility. Epidemiology. 1994 Mar;5(2):247–250. doi: 10.1097/00001648-199403000-00016. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Hebert P. R., Rich-Edwards J. W., Manson J. E., Ridker P. M., Cook N. R., O'Connor G. T., Buring J. E., Hennekens C. H. Height and incidence of cardiovascular disease in male physicians. Circulation. 1993 Oct;88(4 Pt 1):1437–1443. doi: 10.1161/01.cir.88.4.1437. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Hoffmans M. D., Kromhout D., de Lezenne Coulander C. The impact of body mass index of 78,612 18-year old Dutch men on 32-year mortality from all causes. J Clin Epidemiol. 1988;41(8):749–756. doi: 10.1016/0895-4356(88)90161-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Lee I. M., Manson J. E., Hennekens C. H., Paffenbarger R. S., Jr Body weight and mortality. A 27-year follow-up of middle-aged men. JAMA. 1993 Dec 15;270(23):2823–2828. doi: 10.1001/jama.270.23.2823. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Leon D. A., Smith G. D., Shipley M., Strachan D. Adult height and mortality in London: early life, socioeconomic confounding, or shrinkage? J Epidemiol Community Health. 1995 Feb;49(1):5–9. doi: 10.1136/jech.49.1.5. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Lindsted K., Tonstad S., Kuzma J. W. Body mass index and patterns of mortality among Seventh-day Adventist men. Int J Obes. 1991 Jun;15(6):397–406. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Manson J. E., Stampfer M. J., Hennekens C. H., Willett W. C. Body weight and longevity. A reassessment. JAMA. 1987 Jan 16;257(3):353–358. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Nieto-García F. J., Bush T. L., Keyl P. M. Body mass definitions of obesity: sensitivity and specificity using self-reported weight and height. Epidemiology. 1990 Mar;1(2):146–152. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Peck A. M., Vågerö D. H. Adult body height, self perceived health and mortality in the Swedish population. J Epidemiol Community Health. 1989 Dec;43(4):380–384. doi: 10.1136/jech.43.4.380. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Pi-Sunyer F. X. Medical hazards of obesity. Ann Intern Med. 1993 Oct 1;119(7 Pt 2):655–660. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-119-7_part_2-199310011-00006. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Pi-Sunyer F. X. The fattening of America. JAMA. 1994 Jul 20;272(3):238–239. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Rantakallio P. Groups at risk in low birth weight infants and perinatal mortality. Acta Paediatr Scand. 1969;193(Suppl):1+–1+. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Rantakallio P., Lärä E., Koiranen M. A 28 year follow up of mortality among women who smoked during pregnancy. BMJ. 1995 Aug 19;311(7003):477–480. doi: 10.1136/bmj.311.7003.477. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Rantakallio P., Myhrman A., Koiranen M. Juvenile offenders, with special reference to sex differences. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 1995 May;30(3):113–120. doi: 10.1007/BF00802039. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Rich-Edwards J. W., Goldman M. B., Willett W. C., Hunter D. J., Stampfer M. J., Colditz G. A., Manson J. E. Adolescent body mass index and infertility caused by ovulatory disorder. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1994 Jul;171(1):171–177. doi: 10.1016/0002-9378(94)90465-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Rissanen A. M., Heliövaara M., Knekt P., Reunanen A., Aromaa A. Determinants of weight gain and overweight in adult Finns. Eur J Clin Nutr. 1991 Sep;45(9):419–430. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Rissanen A., Heliövaara M., Knekt P., Aromaa A., Reunanen A., Maatela J. Weight and mortality in Finnish men. J Clin Epidemiol. 1989;42(8):781–789. doi: 10.1016/0895-4356(89)90076-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Rissanen A., Knekt P., Heliövaara M., Aromaa A., Reunanen A., Maatela J. Weight and mortality in Finnish women. J Clin Epidemiol. 1991;44(8):787–795. doi: 10.1016/0895-4356(91)90131-r. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Sidney S., Friedman G. D., Siegelaub A. B. Thinness and mortality. Am J Public Health. 1987 Mar;77(3):317–322. doi: 10.2105/ajph.77.3.317. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Stevens J., Keil J. E., Rust P. F., Tyroler H. A., Davis C. E., Gazes P. C. Body mass index and body girths as predictors of mortality in black and white women. Arch Intern Med. 1992 Jun;152(6):1257–1262. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Stewart A. W., Jackson R. T., Ford M. A., Beaglehole R. Underestimation of relative weight by use of self-reported height and weight. Am J Epidemiol. 1987 Jan;125(1):122–126. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a114494. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Vandenbroucke J. P., Mauritz B. J., de Bruin A., Verheesen J. H., van der Heide-Wessel C., van der Heide R. M. Weight, smoking, and mortality. JAMA. 1984 Nov 23;252(20):2859–2860. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Waaler H. T. Height, weight and mortality. The Norwegian experience. Acta Med Scand Suppl. 1984;679:1–56. doi: 10.1111/j.0954-6820.1984.tb12901.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Wannamethee G., Shaper A. G. Body weight and mortality in middle aged British men: impact of smoking. BMJ. 1989 Dec 16;299(6714):1497–1502. doi: 10.1136/bmj.299.6714.1497. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Wooley S. C., Garner D. M. Dietary treatments for obesity are ineffective. BMJ. 1994 Sep 10;309(6955):655–656. doi: 10.1136/bmj.309.6955.655. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES