Via practica 3/2017

Obesity in old age

Prevalence of obesity is increasing also in seniors. It starts to decline after age of 70 years. The prevalence of obesity is higher when assessed by waist circumference. The share of fat is higher in age due to atrophy of muscles and infiltration of muscles and liver. The regressive trends override after age of 70 and total mass of fat starts to diminish. Energy consumption is decreased in old age due to reduced basic metabolic rate and due to decreased physical activity. The ideal BMI in old age is in range 25 – 30 kg/m2. The negative aftermaths of obesity persist also in old age but they are less pronounced. Prognosis of obese patients with postocoronary revascularization, with chronic renal or heart failure and some patients with nonSTEMI is better that that of the non-obese patients (obesity paradox). Negative aftermaths of weight reduction include loss of muscle mass and bone density. These negative effects can be decreased with sufficient protein intake and physical exercise. The most suitable refunction diet seems to be diet with high protein content (except for patients with advanced kidney disease). An option for treatment of morbid obesity is bariatric surgery, which is being performed also in old age.

Keywords: old age, ageing, obesity, metabolic syndrome