STUDYING THE VARIABILITY IN THE HEART RATE OF OVERWEIGHT AND UNDERWEIGHT YOUNG SUBJECTS

Abstract

Background: Obesity represents excessive adipose tissue mass and is generally expressed as BMI (Body mass index). The autonomic nervous system plays a vital role in regulating body fat content and energy expenditure. HRV (heart rate variability) is one of the tests that assess the effect of autonomic regulation on the heart.
Aim: The present study aimed to assess the variability in the heart rate of overweight and underweight young subjects taken as BMI>25 kg/m2 and <18 kg/m2 respectively.
Methods: The present study included subjects aged 18-25 years to assess variations of heart rate variability in young subjects as assessed by body weight. In all the subjects from both groups, anthropometric parameters such as 5-minute supine heart rate variability, blood pressure, and resting pulse rate were assessed. Effects of body weight on heart rate variability were evaluated in two groups and were compared.
Results: The study results showed a significant decrease in higher Low Frequency Normalized Unit (LFnu), RMSSD (Square root of Mean Squared difference of successive NN interval), SDNN (Standard deviation of NN interval), High Frequency (HF), and TP (total power) in overweight group subjects compared to underweight group. The study results also showed a significant negative correlation in HFnu, LFnu, and RP (resting pulse) in the two study groups.
Conclusions: The present study concludes an autonomic dysfunction characterized by a decrease of parasympathetic and increased sympathetic activity in overweight group subjects that can result in early heart-related complications.