Statins and BP drugs close obesity's heart risk gap, Lancet finds
SkimNews Take
Pharmacotherapy is quietly severing the link between obesity and its traditional cardiovascular signatures, meaning BMI alone may become a less reliable proxy for actual cardiometabolic risk in heavily medicated populations.
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- NCD Risk Factor Collaboration study in The Lancet tracked cardiovascular risk factors across BMI groups from 1990 to 2024, using data from 110 health datasets covering 1 million adults in England, the US, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Finland.
- Blood pressure and unhealthy cholesterol levels fell more sharply among people aged 40-79 with overweight or obesity than among same-age peers with normal BMI, with changes less pronounced in Taiwan and Thailand.
- By 2024, adults in their 60s and 70s with obesity had blood pressure and cholesterol levels similar to or lower than older adults with a normal BMI, according to the research.
- Adults under 40 showed no such convergence between BMI groups, likely reflecting less screening for the two 'silent dangers,' the authors reported.
- 70-72% of adults in the oldest cohort with overweight or obesity were taking blood pressure drugs or statins compared with 40-48% of those with normal BMI; generic versions cost roughly $100 a year in the U.S.
- Co-author Majid Ezzati of Imperial College London attributed the improvement to higher use of antihypertensive and lipid-lowering medicines, while co-author Edward Gregg stressed obesity still raises risk for diabetes, cancer, kidney disease, and musculoskeletal conditions.
- Co-author Paul Franks warned that atherosclerosis is irreversible—plaques on arteries persist even if their fat volume shrinks—and said it is 'quite worrying' that younger adults aren't seeing the same metabolic benefits.
Why it matters: With 70-72% of older adults with obesity now on cheap, generic cardiovascular drugs, the medical system has effectively offset one of obesity's deadliest risks for that age group at roughly $100 a year per patient. The study's young-adult blind spot signals a coming wave: today's under-40 group is accumulating irreversible arterial damage and obesity-related diseases that current screening patterns will miss until it's too late.
