Relationship of ABO Blood Groups and Rhesus Factor with Body Mass Index among Students of Technical Institute of Karbala

Background: Increased body mass index leads to fatness and is a preeminent risk factor for hypertension and diabetes. Blood groups are known to be associated with various diseases and recent studies have shown that a specific blood group with the highest body mass index appeared to be more susceptive to tendency to hypertension.Aims: To find out the relationship of body mass index with different blood groups in technical students in Karbala Technical Institute. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Karbala Technical Institute. Period: February 2016 to June 2016. Materials and Methods: Weight, height and ABO blood groups were performed on 292 Technical students with 136 males and 156 females and age ranging from 18-30 years. Results: Mean age of the contributors was 21.40 ± 2.23 years. Mean BMI of subjects with blood group A, B, AB and O were found to be 23.17 ± 2.96, 23.84 ±2.63, 23.37 ± 3.52 and 23.59 ± 2.59 kg/m2 respectively. The highest BMI was found in subjects with blood group “B” 23.84 ± 2.63 kg/m2 and lowest in blood group “A” 23.17 ± 2.96 kg/m2. Blood group “O” was found to be most prevalent (33.2%) while blood group “AB” was found to be the least (11%). The Rhesus-D negative and females students had greater body mass index 23.53 ± 2.77 than male 23.48 ± 2.88. Conclusion: Blood group “B” and Rhesus-D negative subjects especially females were found to be the high hazard blood type with predisposition to morbidity associated with increased body mass index. Keywords: Blood groups, body mass index, Technical students