Associations of Asthma with Body Mass Index and Adult Weight Change among Reproductive Age Women

Abstract

Objective. To evaluate the cross-sectional relationship between asthma and pre-gravid body mass index (BMI), and to assess the risk of adult weight change among women with history of asthma diagnosed in childhood or adulthood, respectively. Study design. Study participants were 3737 pregnant women enrolled in a cohort study. Information on history of asthma, pre-gravid BMI, adult weight change (difference between BMI at age 18 and pre-gravid BMI), and other sociodemographic characteristics was collected using interviewer-administered questionnaires. Pre-gravid BMI was categorized into lean (BMI < 18.5 kg/m²), overweight (BMI = 25–24.9 kg/m²), and obese (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²). Logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results. Approximately 13.1% of study participants reported history of asthma. Compared with the reference group (BMI = 18.5–24.9 kg/m²), the odds of asthma was higher among overweight (OR = 1.51; 95% CI = 1.18–1.93) and obese (OR = 1.47; 95% CI = 1.06–2.03) women while it was lower among lean women (OR = 0.42; 95% CI = 0.21–0.84) (trend p-value <.001). Women who gained ≥20 kg compared with those who maintained their weight (±2.5 kg) had a 2.7-fold increased odds of asthma (95% CI = 1.02–7.00). Conclusions. Overweight and obese women were more likely to have a history of asthma. Adult weight gain was positively associated with asthma diagnosis. Longitudinal studies designed to prospectively assess patterns of adult weight change in relation to asthma are warranted.

• adult weight change
• asthma
• body mass index
• obesity
• pediatric asthma

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the staff of the Center for Perinatal Studies, Swedish Medical Center, Seattle, WA, USA, for their technical assistance with this research.

This research was completed while Dr. Neway Gessesse Fida was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow with the University of Washington Reproductive, Perinatal and Pediatric Research Training Program supported by an award from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (T32 HD052462). This research was also supported by awards from the National Institutes of Health (R01 HD-032562 and R01 HD-055566).

Declaration of Interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.