Associations of Obesity with Osteoporosis and Metabolic Syndrome in Korean Postmenopausal Women: a Cross-sectional Study Using National Survey Data

Purpose: To examine sample characteristics, prevalence, and the risk of osteoporosis and metabolic syndrome among four groups of postmenopausal women classified by obesity.

Methods: Data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were analyzed using the Rao-Scott chi-square test, analysis of variance, and multinomial logistic regression analysis. The four groups included body mass index (BMI)-based obese, waist circumference (WC)-based obese, BMI-, and WC-based obese, and non-obese women, using BMI and WC cutoffs for obesity of ≥ 25 kg/m and ≥ 80 cm, respectively.

Results: The prevalence of osteoporosis and MS was 40.8% and 48.5%, respectively. Age, socioeconomic status, smoking status, and hormone therapy use differed among the obese groups. The odds ratios of simultaneously having both osteoporosis and MS in the BMI- and WC-based obese, BMI-based obese, WC-based obese, and non-obese groups were 7.39 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 4.83-11.31), 0.74 (95% CI = 0.27-1.98), 7.07 (95% CI = 4.72-10.58), and 1, respectively.

Conclusions: The findings demonstrate the most and the least desirable types of obesity in terms of risk for both osteoporosis and MS. Public health practitioners may consider the type of obesity to reduce or prevent both conditions in postmenopausal women.