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Obesity as a Potential Explanatory Factor in the Association Between Socioeconomic Position and Multidimensional
María Teófila Vicente-Herrero1, Ángel Arturo López González1, Pedro J Tárraga López2
1ADEMA University School, University of the Balearic Islands, 07009 Palma, Spain.
Medical Sciences (Basel, Switzerland)
|July 27, 2026
Summary
Obesity helps explain why lower socioeconomic status is linked to worse cardiometabolic health. Addressing obesity may reduce metabolic health inequalities in working adults.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
- Metabolic Health
Background:
- Cardiometabolic diseases disproportionately affect lower socioeconomic groups.
- Obesity is a potential mediator linking social disadvantage to adverse cardiometabolic profiles.
- This study investigates obesity's role in socioeconomic disparities in metabolic health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate if obesity partially explains the association between socioeconomic position and cardiometabolic outcomes.
- To quantify the mediating effect of obesity on metabolic health inequalities.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study of 3108 working adults in Spain.
- Assessed socioeconomic position (education, occupation) and cardiometabolic outcomes (obesity, fatty liver, insulin resistance, etc.).
- Used multivariable logistic regression and mediation analyses with sequential adjustment for obesity.
Main Results:
- A socioeconomic gradient was observed for all cardiometabolic outcomes.
- Lower education remained associated with obesity, but associations with other outcomes were attenuated after adjustment.
- Obesity explained 53-72% of the association between socioeconomic status and outcomes like fatty liver disease and metabolic syndrome.
Conclusions:
- Obesity significantly mediates socioeconomic inequalities in cardiometabolic risk, particularly for fatty liver disease.
- Addressing obesity within its social context is crucial for reducing metabolic health disparities.
- Findings highlight the need for public health strategies targeting socioeconomic factors and obesity.
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