Obesity and COVID-19: Two sides of the coin
Year: 2021
Type: article
Abstract: Obesity and impaired metabolic health are important risk factors for the non-communicable diseases type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, neurodegenerative diseases, cancer and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. With the worldwide spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), obesity and impaired metabolic health also emerged as important determinants of severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Novel findings indicate that specifically visceral obesity and characteristics of impaired metabolic health such as hyperglycaemia, hypertension and subclinical inflammation are associated with a high risk of severe COVID-19. Obesity and impaired metabolic health increase complications and mortality in COVID-19, predominantly by facilitating SARS-CoV-2 infection and resulting organ dysfunction, particularly in cardiometabolically relevant tissues and organs as the vessel wall, heart, kidneys, liver, gut and pancreas. Furthermore, as obesity and diabetes mellitus have been found to impair the development of immunological memory (for example, after influenza vaccination), it cannot be excluded that obesity and hyperglycaemia might also negatively affect the long term efficiency of a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. Because of the striking resemblance between the mechanisms by which obesity and impaired metabolic health affect the risk of cardiometabolic diseases and severe COVID-19, preventive measures immediately taken to reduce fat mass in obese subjects and to improve metabolic health could also decrease the risk of severe COVID-19.
Source: Obesity Facts
Author: Luca Busetto
Language: English
Subfield: Infectious Diseases
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,590
OpenAlex ID: W3167792220