Journal of Medicine and Medical Sciences Vol. 1(6) pp. 254-260 July 2010 Available online http://www.interesjournals.org/JMMS Copyright ©2010 International Research Journals Full Length Research Paper Obesity, metabolic syndrome and BMI-metabolic-risk sub-phenotypes: A study of an adult Nigerian population Ifeoma I Ijeh, Uchechukwu Okorie and Chukwunonso ECC Ejike Department of Biochemistry, College of Natural and Applied Sciences, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, PMB 7267 Umuahia, Abia State – Nigeria Accepted 06 July, 2010 Obesity and the metabolic syndrome are health care challenges of not only the industrialized nations but also of the developing countries. BMI-metabolic-risk sub-phenotypes separate obesity from its metabolic consequences. These indices have not been duly studied in Nigeria. One hundred and ninety nine adult Nigerians (52.3% females) were studied. Obesity and metabolic syndrome were defined using World Health Organization and US National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III criteria, respectively. The presence or absence of the metabolic syndrome within the 3 BMI groups (normal, overweight and obese) was used to define 6 BMI-metabolic-risk sub-phenotypes. The results show that 12.1% (13.7% for males and 10.6% for females) of the population were obese. Metabolic syndrome was found in 30.8% (males 34.7%; females 26.9%) of the population. In the obese and overweight subjects, 33.3% and 40.9% respectively were metabolically healthy while 37.6% of the normal weight subjects were metabolically obese. BMI-metabolic-risk sub-phenotypes were found at the rates of 4%-34.2% in the entire population. The results are compared to figures from other studies, and discussed in the light of their implications for a country like Nigeria that is still battling with communicable diseases. Lifestyle modifications that encourage physical exertion and appropriate nutrition are advocated. Key words: BMI-metabolic-risk sub-phenotypes, metabolic syndrome, obesity INTRODUCTION Obesity has become a growing health problem globally, but more importantly in the developing countries where chronic diseases battle with communicable diseases for an often meager healthcare budget (Reddy, 2002; Kengne et al., 2005). It confers risk of morbidity and mortality from type 2 diabetes and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD) and other chronic diseases (Flegal et al., 2005; Meigs et al., 2006). The measurement of BMI as a universal criterion of overweight (BMI25, but <30) and obesity (BMI30) has been recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO, 2000). Visceral fat accumulation which often accompanies obesity, leads to a cascade of metabolic disturbances, often referred to as the metabolic syndromes (Mokdad et al., 2003; Carr and Brunzell, 2004). The US National *Corresponding author e-mail: ijeh.ifeoma@mouau.edu.ng, ijehirene@yahoo.com; Mobile phone: +2348064719842 Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Adult Treatment Panel 3 (ATP III) defines the metabolic syndrome as a cluster of three or more of the following (1) abdominal obesity (waist circumference >102 cm in men and >88 cm in women) (2) concentration of triglycerides 150 mg/dl (3) concentration of HDL-cholesterol < 40 mg/dl in men and <50 mg/dl in women (4) blood pressure 130/85 mmHg and fasting glucose 110 mg/dl (NCEP, 2001). Other definitions of the syndrome, with slight variations are also available (Ford, 2005a). The etiology of the metabolic syndrome is still largely unknown, but it is thought to represent a complex interaction among genetic, metabolic and environmental factors (Groop, 2000; Lidfeldt et al., 2003). Though BMI is known to be related to the metabolic syndrome, the relationship may not always be a dose-response relationship (Meigs et al., 2006). Sub-phenotypes of obesity, that appear to separate obesity from its apparent metabolic consequences have been described. The metabolically obese normal-weight