Body mass index (BMI) is a value derived from someone’s weight and height that indicates weight categories that could lead to health issues. In the past, a high BMI was believed to correlate to heavier bodyweight or body fat; now, we know that BMI can be higher in weight lifters, gymgoers, and other individuals without necessarily indicating body fat. At this point, a high BMI CAN, but does not always, correlate to higher body fat. In the United States, BMI in adolescents and children is steadily rising as more children grapple with childhood obesity. An estimated 20% of adolescents nationwide have a BMI that sits at or above the 95th percentile for their age and biological sex categories, shares Rose Weldon in Healio.

Weldon also reports that researchers in Tel Aviv recently explored the relationship between body mass index in adolescents and the risk of developing chronic kidney disease (CKD) as an adult. In research, published in JAMA Pediatrics, the team retrospectively analyzed data from a cohort study of 593,660 adolescents between ages 16 and 20. They found that:

• After a mean follow-up period of 13.4 years, 0.3% of the study population, or approximately 1,963 people, had developed early-stage chronic kidney disease.
• Researchers found that high BMI did positively correlate with CKD development. For example, males were most likely to develop CKD if they had been severely obese as an adolescent. Being mildly obese, overweight, or even having a high-normal BMI also increased the risk of developing CKD in males.
• Similarly, females who were severely obese, mildly obese, overweight, or had a high-normal BMI also saw a heightened risk of CKD.
• Researchers questioned whether NOT having diabetes or hypertension had any relationship with CKD development. They found that being overweight or obese in adolescence increased the risk of CKD in adulthood even without having diabetes or hypertension.

About Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)

Also known as: chronic kidney failure

Your kidneys play a role in keeping your body healthy and balanced. The kidneys help to make new red blood cells, maintain blood pressure, and remove wastes from the body. When your kidneys are damaged, they’re unable to perform these functions, leading to health issues. Chronic kidney disease is a condition in which your kidneys are damaged and cannot filter blood the way that they should. This damage also grows progressively worse over time, leading to electrolytes, fluids, and wastes accumulating in your body. High blood pressure, interstitial nephritis and glomerulonephritis, prolonged urinary tract obstruction, diabetes, and recurrent kidney infections can all cause CKD. In earlier stages, CKD may be managed with diuretics, vitamin supplements, and medications for high blood pressure and cholesterol. Later, individuals with end-stage kidney disease may require dialysis or kidney transplantation.

Symptoms of CKD may include nausea, swollen feet and ankles, shortness of breath, high blood pressure, changes in urination, itchy skin, muscle cramps, jaundice (yellowing of the skin, eyes, and mucosa), an enlarged liver or spleen, stunted growth, and fatigue.