Even a few extra kilos can add to problems of COVID patients under age 40

Even slightly overweight people are at a greater risk of developing a severe form of COVID-19 and the risk is amplified for those under age 40, says a research conducted in the United Kingdom. Researchers the world over are trying to find answers on how best to handle the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed 3.16 million people in the past one year.

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“All those with a body mass index above 23, which is considered at the upper end of the healthy range, are already at higher risk, according to the UK researchers. They found that each one-point increase in BMI raises the chance of hospitalization by 5% and of intensive-care admission by 10%,” reports Bloomberg quoting from a research published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology journal.

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The study added that the risk was greatest for those under age 40, and it got worse for Black people compared with other ethnic groups. The findings were based on a study of the health records of almost 7 million people in England.

The study comes at a time when many people all over the world are working and studying from home in view of the pandemic. Many of these sequesterd people are also struggling with expanding waistlines as daily exercise routines take a hit.