Physical Activity Reduces the Effect of High Body Mass Index on Kidney Stones in Diabetes Participants From the 2007-2018 NHANES Cycles: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Body mass index (BMI) is a vital risk factor for kidney stones, but physical activity may reduce the incidence of kidney stones. However, it remains unknown whether physical activity reduces the effect of high BMI on kidney stones in diabetes participants.

Methods: We included clinical information from 4,008 adult participants with diabetes from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) database from 2007 to 2018. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to analyze the relationship between BMI and kidney stones, as well as the risk of BMI and kidney stones in different physical activity subgroups.

Results: A total of 4,008 diabetic participants were included in this study, of whom 652 (16.3%) self-reported a history of kidney stones. Logistic regression analysis showed a positive association between BMI and kidney stones. After adjusting for other confounders, the adjusted ORs for the risk of kidney stones was 1.514 (95% CI, 1.134-2.022, = 0.005) for participants with BMI ≥30 kg/m among all participants; the risk of kidney stones was elevated (OR = 1.572, 95% CI, 1.134-2.022, = 0.005) in group without physical activity, and a reduced risk (OR = 1.421, 95% CI, 0.847-2.382, = 0.183) in the group with physical activity. Furthermore, similar results were found in most subgroups.

Conclusion: Our study suggests that high BMI is a risk factor for diabetes kidney stone participants and that physical activity may moderate this relationship to some extent.