Study finds obese people at higher risk of COVID-19 complications

A troubling connection between two health crises: coronavirus and obesity have been explored in a novel review of COVID-19 studies.

From COVID-19 risk to recovery, the odds are stacked against those with obesity, and a new study led by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill raises concerns about the impact of obesity on the effectiveness of a future COVID-19 vaccine.

Researchers examined the available published literature on individuals infected with the virus and found that those with obesity (BMI over 30) were at a greatly increased risk for hospitalization (113%), more likely to be admitted to the intensive care unit (74%), and had a higher risk of death (48%) from the virus.

For the paper, researchers reviewed immunological and biomedical data to provide a detailed layout of the mechanisms and pathways that link obesity with increased risk of COVID-19 as well as an increased likelihood of developing more severe complications from the virus.