Skip to main content
PMC home page
Gut logoLink to Gut
. 2000 Jul;47(1):26–29. doi: 10.1136/gut.47.1.26

No relation between body mass and gastro-oesophageal reflux symptoms in a Swedish population based study

J Lagergren 1, R Bergstrom 1, O Nyren 1
PMCID: PMC1727954  PMID: 10861260

Abstract

BACKGROUND—There is a widespread notion that obesity leads to gastro-oesophageal reflux but scientific evidence of an association is limited and inconsistent.
AIMS—To estimate the strength of the association between body mass and reflux symptoms, we performed a population based cross sectional interview study.
SUBJECTS—Population based, randomly selected, middle aged or elderly persons in Sweden in 1995-1997.
METHODS—At face-to-face interviews we asked a stratified sample of Swedes about body measures and occurrence of reflux symptoms. Odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI), calculated by logistic regression with multivariate adjustments for covariates, were the measures of association.
RESULTS—Reflux symptoms occurring at least once a week more than five years before the interview were reported by 135 (16%) of the 820 interviewees. Among those who had ever been overweight during adulthood (body mass index (BMI) ⩾25 kg/m2), the OR of having recurrent reflux symptoms was 0.99 (95% CI 0.66-1.47) compared with those who were never overweight. There was no association between BMI at age 20, BMI 20 years before the interview, or maximum adult BMI and occurrence of reflux symptoms: ORs per unit increase in BMI were 1.00 (95% CI 0.93-1.09), 1.03 (95% CI 0.96-1.10), and 1.01 (95% CI=0.95 1.07), respectively. There was no association between BMI and severity or duration of reflux symptoms.
CONCLUSIONS—Gastro-oesophageal reflux symptoms occur independently of body mass index. Weight reduction may not be justifiable as an antireflux therapy.


Keywords: gastro-oesophageal reflux; body mass index; obesity; population based study

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (136.4 KB).

Selected References

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

  1. Breslow N. E., Day N. E. Statistical methods in cancer research. Volume I - The analysis of case-control studies. IARC Sci Publ. 1980;(32):5–338. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Chang C. S., Poon S. K., Lien H. C., Chen G. H. The incidence of reflux esophagitis among the Chinese. Am J Gastroenterol. 1997 Apr;92(4):668–671. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Dent J. Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease. Digestion. 1998 Aug;59(5):433–445. doi: 10.1159/000007521. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Garrow J. S., Webster J. Quetelet's index (W/H2) as a measure of fatness. Int J Obes. 1985;9(2):147–153. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Isolauri J., Laippala P. Prevalence of symptoms suggestive of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease in an adult population. Ann Med. 1995 Feb;27(1):67–70. doi: 10.3109/07853899509031939. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Kahrilas P. J. Gastroesophageal reflux disease. JAMA. 1996 Sep 25;276(12):983–988. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Kjellin A., Ramel S., Rössner S., Thor K. Gastroesophageal reflux in obese patients is not reduced by weight reduction. Scand J Gastroenterol. 1996 Nov;31(11):1047–1051. doi: 10.3109/00365529609036885. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Klauser A. G., Schindlbeck N. E., Müller-Lissner S. A. Symptoms in gastro-oesophageal reflux disease. Lancet. 1990 Jan 27;335(8683):205–208. doi: 10.1016/0140-6736(90)90287-f. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Lagergren J., Bergström R., Lindgren A., Nyrén O. Symptomatic gastroesophageal reflux as a risk factor for esophageal adenocarcinoma. N Engl J Med. 1999 Mar 18;340(11):825–831. doi: 10.1056/NEJM199903183401101. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Lagergren J., Bergström R., Nyrén O. Association between body mass and adenocarcinoma of the esophagus and gastric cardia. Ann Intern Med. 1999 Jun 1;130(11):883–890. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-130-11-199906010-00003. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Locke G. R., 3rd, Talley N. J., Fett S. L., Zinsmeister A. R., Melton L. J., 3rd Prevalence and clinical spectrum of gastroesophageal reflux: a population-based study in Olmsted County, Minnesota. Gastroenterology. 1997 May;112(5):1448–1456. doi: 10.1016/s0016-5085(97)70025-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Locke G. R., Talley N. J., Weaver A. L., Zinsmeister A. R. A new questionnaire for gastroesophageal reflux disease. Mayo Clin Proc. 1994 Jun;69(6):539–547. doi: 10.1016/s0025-6196(12)62245-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Lundell L., Ruth M., Sandberg N., Bove-Nielsen M. Does massive obesity promote abnormal gastroesophageal reflux? Dig Dis Sci. 1995 Aug;40(8):1632–1635. doi: 10.1007/BF02212682. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Revicki D. A., Wood M., Wiklund I., Crawley J. Reliability and validity of the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease. Qual Life Res. 1998 Jan;7(1):75–83. doi: 10.1023/a:1008841022998. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Romero Y., Cameron A. J., Locke G. R., 3rd, Schaid D. J., Slezak J. M., Branch C. D., Melton L. J., 3rd Familial aggregation of gastroesophageal reflux in patients with Barrett's esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma. Gastroenterology. 1997 Nov;113(5):1449–1456. doi: 10.1053/gast.1997.v113.pm9352846. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Stene-Larsen G., Weberg R., Frøyshov Larsen I., Bjørtuft O., Hoel B., Berstad A. Relationship of overweight to hiatus hernia and reflux oesophagitis. Scand J Gastroenterol. 1988 May;23(4):427–432. doi: 10.3109/00365528809093890. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Ter R. B., Castell D. O. Gastroesophageal reflux disease in patients with columnar-lined esophagus. Gastroenterol Clin North Am. 1997 Sep;26(3):549–563. doi: 10.1016/s0889-8553(05)70313-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Williford W. O., Krol W. F., Spechler S. J. Development for and results of the use of a gastroesophageal reflux disease activity index as an outcome variable in a clinical trial. VA Cooperative Study Group on Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD). Control Clin Trials. 1994 Oct;15(5):335–348. doi: 10.1016/0197-2456(94)90031-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Gut are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES