Obese men at higher risk of
dying in a motor vehicle accident than normal-weight peers
FRIDAY, March 17 (HealthDay News) -- Obese men are at a higher risk of death in a motor vehicle accident than men of normal weight, according to a study published online March 14 in the American Journal of Public Health. However, there is no association between body mass index and crash-related mortality in women.
Shankuan Zhu, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, analyzed data collected by the U.S. Department of Transportation between 1997 through 2001. The data included 22,107 drivers aged 16 and older (13,007 men and 9,100 women). The investigators analyzed body mass index (BMI) and driver fatality within 30 days and took into consideration gender, seat belt use, type of collision, airbag deployment and change in velocity.
The fatality rate was 0.87 percent for men and 0.43 percent for women. Male drivers with a BMI of greater than 35 kg/m2 or below 22 kg/m2 had a significantly higher risk of death after the accident. Female drivers did not. The magnitude of risk was determined primarily by change in velocity.
The authors believe the difference in fatality rates could be explained by a difference in body shape between the sexes, with a "cushion effect" from the "increased subcutaneous fat depth" in the abdominal region of women.
-- Martha Kerr
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