GOTHENBURG, Sweden, Apr 6, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- Men who were large during
their 20s face an increased risk of atrial fibrillation, or abnormal heart
rhythm, as they age, Swedish researchers say.
Researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden
say the study was initiated in 1970 and involved more than 7,000 men living in
Gothenburg ages 45-55, who were examined and asked questions about their
lifestyle. The subjects were asked to state their weight at age 20.
The research material was compared with the National Patient Register.
The study reveals that the risk of atrial fibrillation increases linearly with
both body size and weight gain. The study, published in the European Heart
Journal, finds that the larger the men were in their 20s and the more weight
they gained during their life, the greater the risk of atrial fibrillation.
Study author Annika Rosengren said the fact that the men were big in their youth
does not mean that they were obese. Obesity in young men was extremely unusual
during the 1930s and 1940s, and these big men were simply tall and well-built.
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