Association between obesity and frailty in community-dwelling middle-aged and elderly people in China
LI Yao
XIA Min
CHEN Xiaomin
WU Yimei
ZHAO Yuqing
ZHANG Guozeng
WU Qian
Abstract：Objective:To explore the association between general obesity,central obesity,and frailty among middle-aged and elderly Chinese adults.Methods:Based on data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study(CHARLS)in 2013,2015,and 2018,2 696 individuals aged 45 and above were included.Information on demographic characteristics,self-reported health-related factors,and current disease status was collected.Multivariate logistic regression and restricted cubic spline analyses were used to examine the association between general obesity,central obesity,and frailty in the middle-aged and elderly population.Results:The mean age of the 2 696 participants was(61.94±8.74)years,with a body mass index(BMI)of(24.34±8.71)kg/m² and a waist circumference of(87.84±9.05)cm.The prevalence of pre-frailty and frailty among the middle-aged and elderly was 41.95%and 1.26%,respectively.Multivariate logistic regression analysis,after adjusting for confounding factors,showed that age 60-69[OR=1.58,95%CI(1.18,2.11)],age≥70[OR=1.60,95%CI(1.15,2.25)],central obesity[OR=1.71,95%CI(1.32,2.22)],general obesity group[OR=1.48,95%CI(1.11,1.98)],urban residence[OR=0.61,95%CI(0.46,0.81)],participation in social activities[OR=0.66,95%CI(0.51,0.85)],and absence of comorbidities[OR=0.02,95%CI(0.02,0.03)]were associated with frailty.Restricted cubic spline fitting of the multiple Logistic regression model revealed that there was a non-linear relationship between waist circumference and the risk of frailty in both men and women(Pnonlinear<0.05),and a non-linear relationship between BMI and the risk of frailty in women(Pnonlinear<0.05).Conclusions:General obesity and central obesity are risk factors for frailty in the middle-aged and elderly population in China,and this association exhibits sex differences.In women,both general obesity and central obesity are associated with an increased risk of frailty,whereas in men,only central obesity is linked to an elevated frailty risk..
Keywords：middle-aged and elderlyfrailtyobesitybody mass indexwaist circumferencecorrelation
Publication Date：2026-03-10
Online Publishing Date：2026-03-16(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：8( 732-739 )