Insulin-like Growth Factor I and Anthropometric Parameters in a Danish Population

During the last decade several studies indicated that low insulin-like growth factor (IGF) I levels are related to higher risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality. Obesity represents one further main cardiovascular risk factor which might also be related to IGF-I. The objective of the present study was to analyse the associations between anthropometric measures and IGF-I levels in a population-based sample. From the Danish cross-sectional Health2006 study 3 328 subjects (1 835 women; 1 493 men) aged 19-72 years were included in the analyses. Serum IGF-I levels were determined by an immunoassay. Body height, weight as well as waist and hip circumferences were measured. Body-mass-index, waist-to-hip ratio and waist-to-height ratio were calculated. Circulating IGF-I levels were inversely associated with all anthropometric markers as evaluated by linear regression adjusting for age, alcohol consumption, smoking and physical activity. Our large cross-sectional study suggests that IGF-I may serve as the link between obesity and mortality although any causal relation cannot be inferred and longitudinal analyses are needed to clarify the causal relation.