Obesity and oxidative stress: a direct link to CVD?

In this issue of Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, Keaney and colleagues1 report that smoking, diabetes, and obesity are independently associated with increased oxidative stress in men and women in a large community-based cohort. While a number of investigators have examined the association between risk factors for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and markers of oxidative stress in small clinical samples, Keaney and colleagues1 used the Framingham Offspring Cohort to assess CVD risk and urinary concentrations of the F2-isoprostane 8-epiPGF2 in more than 2800 men and women between 33 and 88 years of age. Although smoking and diabetes have been associated with increased oxidative stress in a number of studies, the finding that obesity, as measured by body mass index (BMI), is independently associated with oxidative stress is relatively new and confirms recent data from much smaller samples.2,3