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Abstract: Background:
The
risk of some diseases associated with excessive adiposity and the impact it has
on health care cost, makes it imperative for this study to aim at linking
variations in body mass index and waist circumference to the levels of ferritin
and some haematological indices in apparently healthy adult residents in Port
Harcourt. We hypothesized therefore, that high body mass index and waist
circumference might influence the amount of stored iron in the body. Materials
and Methods: Two hundred and fifty adults aged 18- 50 years who
were resident in Port Harcourt, Nigeria were recruited which includes 67
(53.60%) female and 58 (46.40%) males for test and control. 125 subjects with
normal weight according to world health organization standard were used as
control group, 56 overweight subjects, and 69 obese subjects were the test
groups. Five milliliter blood sample was collected by standard venipuncture
from each subject, 3mls was dispensed into plain tubes and spun to obtain the
serum meant for ferritin assay using STAT FAX-2100 by awareness technology, 2mls
of the blood was used for the analysis of complete blood count using automated
haematology analyzer. Body Mass index and Waist Circumference were taken using
a stadiometer (for height), weighing scale (for weight) and a measuring tape. A
well-structured questionnaire was also used in this study. Results: There
was no statistically significant difference in the mean levels of mean
corpuscular haemoglobin (p=0.3057) and mean corpuscular volume(p=0.4860)
between the normal weight and overweight /obese subjects. Mean level of
ferritin was higher in the overweight and obese subjects compared to normal
weight but not statistically significant. However, the mean levels of
haematocrit (p=0.0002), haemoglobin (p=0.0001) and red blood cell counts
(p<0.0001) were significantly higher in the overweight and obese group
compared to the normal weight subject. The mean of waist circumference was
significantly higher in the overweight and obese subjects compared to control
subjects p<0.0001. Additionally, it was observed in this study that body
mass index and waist circumference is associated with age. Conclusion: Based on this study, it may be stated that overweight, and obesity is increasing in Port Harcourt. Neither anaemia nor iron overload was observed in this study. Furthermore, normal ferritin level among overweight and obese people does not necessarily indicate normal iron storage, therefore, serum ferritin should be used in conjunction with haematological indices for the diagnosis and monitoring of iron deficiency anaemia or iron overload in obese people. Further research with larger sample size is recommended to study the correlation between serum ferritin, complete blood count, other Anthropometric indices, with body mass index in apparently healthy adults in Rivers State Nigeria. |
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