Obesity is Associated with Increased Cardiovascular Risk and Increased Prevalence of Insulin Resistance among Apparently Healthy Young Adults

Objective: Cardiometabolic abnormalities are still prevalent in young individuals. This research aims to investigate associations between obesity, cardiometabolic risk factors, and insulin resistance (IR) in apparently healthy young adults. Methods: This cross-sectional study involved 70 obese and 70 age/gender matched young adults with normal body weight. Serum glucose, insulin, lipids, and homocysteine were measured. IR was determined using Homeostasis Model Assessment-IR (HOMA-IR). Systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressures were measured. Other data were self-reported. Results: Obese participants exhibited higher SBP, DBP, glucose, triglycerides (TGs), cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), insulin, and HOMA-IR, and lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL) compared to healthy weight participants (p-values<0.01). Body mass index (BMI) was correlated with SBP, DBP, glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR, cholesterol, LDL, TGs, and was inversely correlated with HDL (p-values<0.01). HOMA-IR was correlated with SBP, DBP, cholesterol, LDL, and TGs, and was inversely correlated with HDL (p-values<0.01). Participants with IR had higher BMI, SBP, DBP, cholesterol, LDL, and TGs compared to participants with normal insulin sensitivity (p-values<0.05). Obesity was associated with increased SBP, TGs, insulin and HOMA-IR (p-values<0.05). There was no significant difference in homocysteine between groups (p-value>0.05). Conclusion: Obesity is associated with increased cardiovascular risk and increased prevalence of IR in apparently healthy young adults. Pharmacological and behavioral interventions are urgently needed to manage increased cardiovascular risks among this age group.