The association between obesity with serum levels of liver enzymes, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase and gamma‐glutamyl transferase in adult women

Abstract

Background

Obesity‐induced inflammation may independently disturb the function of critical organs such as liver. This study aimed to investigate the association of obesity with serum levels of biomarkers of liver function including alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and gamma‐glutamyl transferase (GGT) in adult women.

Methods

This cross‐sectional study was carried out on 360 adult women in the summer of 2020 in Tehran, Iran. The participants were categorized into two groups based on their body mass index (BMI≤29.9 and BMI > 30). The serum levels of ALT, AST, ALP and GGT were measured. Logistic regression method was used to assess the association between BMI and liver enzymes after adjusting for the confounders.

Results

The mean BMI in non‐obese and obese groups was 26.32 ± 2.61 and 33.40 ± 2.80 kg/m ², respectively ( p = .01). A significant association was found between BMI with ALT ( β = .16, p = .002) and GGT ( β = .19, p = .01) enzymes after adjustment for age. The association between BMI and GGT remained significant after further adjustments for smoking, alcohol use, physical activity and educational status. There was no significant association between BMI and liver enzymes after adjustment for dietary intake.

Conclusions

Obesity was associated with the level of serum liver enzymes. However, adjustment for dietary intake disappeared the significant results. Further studies are needed to determine the independent effects of obesity on the liver function.

Abstract

The results of the present study indicated that there was a positive association between BMI and serum level of GGT and ALT after adjustment with confounding variable of age. The association between BMI and GGT remained significant after adjusting for smoking status, alcohol use, physical activity, and educational status. There was no significant association between BMI and liver enzymes after further adjustment for dietary intake of calorie, protein, carbohydrate, and fat.