Rising Obesity Rates Might Mean More Rheumatoid Arthritis

Researchers suggest weight gain precedes the painful condition

By Ellin Holohan
HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, May 4 (HealthDay News) -- A new study suggests that severe weight gain might raise the risk for rheumatoid arthritis -- a painful, chronic ailment -- especially among obese women.

The epidemiological research indicated that about half of the increase in rheumatoid arthritis cases in one Minnesota county may be linked to rising obesity rates there over three decades.

"The findings outline yet another disease, or disease group, associated with the current obesity epidemic," said study co-author Dr. Sherine Gabriel. "We are likely to see an increasing incidence of rheumatoid arthritis as a result of the increasing prevalence of obesity if we don't address this health crisis."

Moreover, the research suggested that obesity precedeS the onset of rheumatoid arthritis, said Gabriel, a professor of medicine and epidemiology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.

The impact of obesity on rheumatoid arthritis risk appeared greater for women in the study, which may be due to the fact that women get the disease three times more often than men. Men often develop the condition later in life, according to the Arthritis Foundation.

The study, conducted at the Mayo Clinic from 1985 to 2007, appeared online recently in the journal Arthritis Care & Research.