Effects of obesity on balance in people with intellectual disabilities

To know the differences in balance of people with intellectual disability with and without obesity.

549 people with intellectual disability were evaluated. Participants were categorized as obese or non-obese according to their body mass index. All participants were evaluated with tests for static and semi-static balance.

There were significant differences in the static balance between obese and non-obese people with intellectual disability. For women, there were not significant differences for any tests; in contrast for men, there were only significant differences in the SLSCE in people aged 37-46 years.

Significant differences were found in static balance between non-obese and obese people. In the analyses, in consideration of gender and age range, significant differences were only found in one static balance test, in the young adult men´s group. No significant differences were found in women, either in middle-aged adults or in older adults.