Association of body mass index and waist circumference with falls in Chinese older adults

This study explored the association of obesity as determined by body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) with falls in Chinese older adults. It was a cross-sectional design and used data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey. The outcome variable was experienced falls, and the exposure variables were BMI and WC which represent general obesity and central obesity respectively. For older women, a linear correlation was found between falls and BMI. For participants aged 90 years and older, there was a linear correlation between falls and BMI. Participants with WC in the fourth quartile had a higher risk of falls than those in the first quartile. The findings suggest that the general obesity indicator (BMI), rather than the central obesity index (WC), was positively associated with falls in older women. The risk of falls increased with the increase of BMI or WC in the oldest-old Chinese population. (C) 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.