The Comparison of Body Mass Index and Waist Circumference to Assess Health-Related Quality of Life

Introduction: Health-related quality of life studies performed only based on body mass index does not provide clear results, especially in overweight individuals. The evaluation of body mass index and waist circumference measurements together can offer better insights in this area. Methods: The SF-36 Quality of Life Scale was applied to 398 women aged 18 years and over. The participants were grouped according to body mass index, and the overweight individuals were further divided into groups based on waist circumference measurements. To compare each sub-scale, the Kruskal-Wallis 1 - way ANOVA statistics were used. Results: From the normal weight to class III obesity, the scores in all physical and mental subscales tended to decline, except in the overweight group. Compared to the individuals with normal weight, the overweight participants’ scores in the mental subscales were increased but this was not statistically significant, unlike the other findings. We examined the overweight group separately according to the waist circumference measurements and detected statistically significant differences between the risk groups. The mental scores were significantly decreased in the high-risk group compared to the normal risk group (p<0.05). Conclusion: The effect of obesity on quality of life can be complex if evaluated only by body mass index, and therefore studies evaluating waist circumference measurements together with body mass index can provide clearer results in this area.