# Impact of lifestyle behaviors on the development of lifestyle diseases: A retrospective cohort study

**Authors:** Takafumi Okawa, Hikaru Negishi, Yuki Aoki, Mitsuo Uchida, Yumi Sato, Mai Ishikawa, Rie Matsui, Kaori Hotta, Takayuki Saitoh, Mulu Tiruneh, Mulu Tiruneh, Mulu Tiruneh, Mulu Tiruneh

PMC · DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0327505 · PLOS One · 2025-07-29

## TL;DR

This study shows that lifestyle behaviors like weight gain and smoking are strongly linked to the development of lifestyle diseases such as metabolic syndrome and hypertension.

## Contribution

The study identifies specific lifestyle behaviors with the strongest longitudinal associations to lifestyle diseases using a large cohort.

## Key findings

- Weight gain of ≥10 kg since age 20 showed the strongest association with metabolic syndrome (OR: 2.01).
- Smoking and weight gain were common risk factors for metabolic syndrome, hypertension, and dyslipidemia.
- Lifestyle behaviors assessed via questionnaires can predict future health risks effectively.

## Abstract

Questionnaires are used to collect data on lifestyle behaviors during specific health checkups; however, the results cannot conclusively determine whether the behaviors influence the onset of lifestyle diseases. By analyzing data from a retrospective cohort, this study aimed to determine the specific lifestyle behaviors that most strongly contribute to the onset of lifestyle diseases, such as metabolic syndrome, hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia.

We administrated the data of 924,932 individuals insured under Gunma Prefecture’s National Health Insurance who underwent specific health checkups between 2011 and 2016. A logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the association between the responses to 10 lifestyle questions and the future onset of lifestyle diseases.

We examined 47,803 individuals who were not identified with lifestyle disorders at the initial checkup. In this study, weight gain of ≥10 kg since the age of 20 years showed the strongest association with MetS (OR: 2.01; 95% CI, 1.79–2.25). Additionally, smoking and weight gain were identified as common risk factors for MetS, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. The results revealed that lifestyle behaviors are longitudinally associated with the onset of lifestyle diseases.

The use of self-administered questionnaires to assess lifestyle behaviors can effectively predict future health risks.

## Linked entities

- **Diseases:** metabolic syndrome (MONDO:0000816), diabetes (MONDO:0005015), dyslipidemia (MONDO:0002525)

## Full-text entities

- **Genes:** INS (insulin) [NCBI Gene 3630] {aka IDDM, IDDM1, IDDM2, ILPR, IRDN, MODY10}
- **Diseases:** weight gain (MESH:D015430), kidney disease (MESH:D007674), fat (MESH:D004620), Diabetes (MESH:D003920), Hypertension (MESH:D006973), Dyslipidemia (MESH:D050171), NCDs (MESH:D000073296), Metabolic (MESH:D008659), chronic kidney failure (MESH:D007676), lifestyle disorders (MESH:D009358), MetS (MESH:D024821), heart disease (MESH:D006331), stroke (MESH:D020521), cardiovascular disease (MESH:D002318), fast eating (MESH:D007003), Lifestyle Disease (MESH:D004194), smoking (MESH:D015208), insufficient sleep (MESH:D012892), SHC (OMIM:603663)
- **Chemicals:** LDL-C (-), TG (MESH:D013866), -D (MESH:D003903), glucose (MESH:D005947), alcohol (MESH:D000438), carbohydrates (MESH:D002241), triglyceride (MESH:D014280)
- **Species:** Homo sapiens (human, species) [taxon 9606], Oryza sativa (Asian cultivated rice, species) [taxon 4530]

## Full text

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## Figures

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## References

47 references — full list in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12306743/full.md

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Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12306743