Overweight Men At Higher Risk For Liver Disease, Study Finds

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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- There are many concerns about obesity and the health risks associated with it, but according to a Swedish study, young men who were overweight or obese had a higher risk of developing severe liver disease or liver cancer later in life.

The data is quite alarming: compared with normal-weight men, those who were overweight at age 18 or 19 had a higher risk for severe liver disease over a follow-up period of nearly thirty years.

Development of type 2 diabetes, which is associated with obesity, further increased the risk for severe liver disease across all weight categories.

The study was not small — over 1.2 million men were evaluated.

The message is quite simple and straightforward: steps to reduce the increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity should be implemented from an early age to reduce the future burden of severe liver disease on individuals and society.