Risk factors related to the global burden of disease in Brazil and its Federated Units, 2015.

Objective: To analyze the global burden of disease related to disability adjusted life years (DALYs) attributed to selected risk factors in Brazil and its 27 Federated Units. Methods: Databases from the Global Burden of Disease study in Brazil and its Federated Units were used, estimating the summary exposure value (SEV) for selected environmental, behavioral, and metabolic risk factors (RFs), and their combinations. The DALYs were used as the main metric. The ranking of major RFs between 1990 and 2015 was compiled, comparing data by sex and states. Results: The analyzed RFs account for 38.8% of the loss of DALYs in the country. Dietary risks was the main cause of DALYs in 2015. In men, dietary risks contributed to 12.2% of DALYs and in women, to 11.1%. Other RFs were high systolic blood pressure, high body mass index, smoking, high fasting plasma glucose and, among men, alcohol and drug use. The main RFs were metabolic and behavioral. In most states, dietary risks was the main RF, followed by high blood pressure. Conclusion: Dietary risks leads the RF ranking for Brazil and its Federated Units. Men are more exposed to behavioral risk factors, and women are more exposed to metabolic ones.