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Body composition and dietary habits in 80-year-old smoking men without cardiovascular disease

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Abstract

Eighty-year-old male residents in the community of Malmö were questioned about smoking habits and the occurrence of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Of 1,280 subjects, 122 were selected for further studies and allocated into 4 groups: 1) no CVD, non-smokers; 2) no CVD, smokers; 3) CVD, smokers; and 4) CVD, non-smokers. The smokers had consumed on the average 13 g of tobacco daily for 59 years. Lean body mass (LBM), body fat (BF), % body fat (%BF), and total body water (TBW) were estimated by means of bioelectrical impedance analysis. The mean body weight (BW), LBM, and %BF for all subjects were 74.1 ± 10.2 kg, 58.0 ± 6.8 kg, and 21.3 ± 5.9 kg, respectively.

There were no significant differences between all subjects with and without CVD. A lower BW among smokers than in non-smokers was explained by lower BF and %BF in the former. Smokers who had lived predominantly in rural areas had lower BW (6.9 kg) and LBM (5.2 kg) than those from an urban area. A positive correlation was noted between the degree of physical activity and LBM and TBW. Seventeen percent of the smokers exercised regularly. The CVD group had higher plasma cholesterol concentrations than the non-CVD group. Plasma triglycerides showed a positive correlation with BF, %BF and BW, whereas HDL cholesterol was negatively correlated with BF, %BF and BW.

It is concluded that smoking is one of several important factors related to body composition, and the penetrance of this factor is still apparent in elderly men. (Aging 3: 269–277, 1991)

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Community Health Sciences, Lund University, Värnhem Hospital, S-212 16, Malmö, Sweden

    Sölve Elmståhl M.D., Ph. D. & H. Galvard

  2. Department of Medicine, Malmö General Hospital, Malmö

    G. Järnblad, L. Stavenow, P. Jerntorp & H. Pessah-Rasmussen

  3. Department of Clinical Chemistry, University Hospital, Lund, Sweden

    P. Nilsson-Ehle

Authors
  1. Sölve Elmståhl M.D., Ph. D.
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  2. G. Järnblad
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  3. L. Stavenow
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  4. P. Jerntorp
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  5. H. Pessah-Rasmussen
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  6. H. Galvard
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  7. P. Nilsson-Ehle
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Elmståhl, S., Järnblad, G., Stavenow, L. et al. Body composition and dietary habits in 80-year-old smoking men without cardiovascular disease. Aging Clin Exp Res 3, 269–277 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03324018

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