LONDON - Measuring body mass index or waist size in overweight people can accurately predict the risk of heart disease, Dutch scientists said on Monday.

A large 10-year study found that half of all fatal heart disease cases and a quarter of all non-fatal cases are linked to being overweight and having a high body mass index （BMI） or large waist.

Body mass index and waist circumference are well known risk factors for cardiovascular diseases but the Dutch researchers said their work showed BMI and waist size could actually help predict the risk of dying from or developing heart disease.

"What this study shows is the substantial effect which （being） overweight and obesity have on cardiovascular disease, whether fatal of non-fatal," said Ineke van Dis from the Netherlands Heart Foundation, who led the study.

"In the near future the impact of obesity on the burden of heart disease will be even greater."

Dis and colleagues at the monitoring project on risk factors for chronic diseases at the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment measured between both BMI and waist circumference in 20,500 men and women 1993 and 1997.

When age-adjusted BMI and waist sizes were correlated with hospital records and cause-of-death data over 10 years, more than half （53 percent） of all fatal heart disease cases and around a quarter （25-30 percent） of all non-fatal cases were in people defined as overweight and obese.

Overweight people are defined as having a BMI of between 25 and 30 and obese people of 30 or more, according to the World Health Organization （WHO）. BMI is calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by height in meters squared.

Waist circumference measurements in men were defined as between 94 and 101.9 cm for overweight and more than 102 cm for obese. In women these measurements were 80-87.9 cm for overweight and more than 88 cm for obese.

Obesity is increasing throughout the world and is now recognized as a major global public health concern.

"These findings underline the need for policies and activities to prevent overweight in the general population," Dis said in the study, which was published in the European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation.

荷兰科学家在周一表示，测量体重指数或超重人腰围大小可以准确地预测心脏病风危险。

一项进行10年的研究发现，有一半的致命心脏病病例和四分之一非致命性病例与超重和有高体重指数（BMI）或大腰围有关。

体量指数和腰围是众所周知的心脑血管疾病的导致因素，但荷兰的研究人员表示，他们的研究表明，体重指数和腰围大小实际上能够帮助预测死于心脏病或患上心脏疾病的风险。

"本研究表明超重和肥胖对心血管疾病有实质性的影响，无论是致命的还是非致命的",指导这项研究来自荷兰心脏病基金会的Ineke van Dis说。

"在不久的将来肥胖对心脏病负担的影响将会更大。"

1993年和1997年，Dis和他的同事在荷兰国家公共卫生环境研究所在慢性疾病的危险因素监测项目中对20,500 男女高体重指数（BMI）和腰围进行测量。

当体重指数和腰围大小的年龄调整与10多年来医院记录相关的致死数据一致时，有超过一半（百分之五十三）致命于心脏病病例和大约四分之一（百分之二十五到三十）非致命病例是超重者和肥胖者。

根据世界卫生组织（世卫组织）,超重的人被定义为体重指数有25到30,肥胖者体重指数为30以上。体重指数是按公斤体重除以平方米身高的方式计算

男性腰围测量，94到101.9厘米定义为超重，超过102厘米为肥胖。妇女测量80-87.9厘米为超重，88以上为肥胖厘米。

现在世界各地肥胖者越来越多，被认为是全球主要关注的一个公共卫生问题。

"这些发现强调需要政策和活动的来防止普通人群中出现超重，"Dis在研究中说，并发表在欧洲心血管预防和康复杂志上