| Summary: | Xiaojun Liu,1 Shuoni Chen,2 Anran Tan,2 Jiayi Zhou,2 Wenbin Liu1 1Department of Health Management, School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350122, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Global Health, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430072, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Wenbin LiuDepartment of Health Management, School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Room 108 in the Building for School of Public Health, No. 1 Xuefubei Road, Minhou District, Fuzhou, 350122, People’s Republic of ChinaTel/Fax +86- 591-2286-2572Email wenbinliu126@126.comPurpose: The association between body mass index (BMI) and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) has not been verified neither in China nor in any other Asian country. This study aimed to examine the association between BMI and HRQOL in the Chinese older adults population.Methods: A total of 5018 older adults from the China’s Health-Related Quality of Life Survey for Older Adults 2018 was included in this study. The HRQOL was measured by the Chinese version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument-Older Adults Module (WHOQOL-OLD). Multiple linear regression analysis was used to explore the associations between BMI and HRQOL among the older adults in rural, urban, and total samples.Results: After adjusting all the confounders, compared with normal weight group, underweight was negatively correlated with the total scores of HRQOL among the older adults in rural (B= − 2.310, p < 0.01), urban (B= − 1.019, p < 0.001), and total samples (B= − 2.351, p < 0.001), whereas overweight was positively associated with the total scores of HRQOL among the older adults in rural samples (B= 0.888, p < 0.05). The results showed that obesity was not associated with the total scores of HRQOL among the older adults in rural (B= − 1.214, p > 0.05), urban (B= − 0.074, p > 0.05), and total samples (B= − 1.461, p > 0.05).Conclusion: This study suggests that obese Chinese older adults did not show a better quality of life than those of normal weight. But this result does not deny the “jolly fat” hypothesis entirely, as the overweight older adults from rural areas showed better HRQOL. Moreover, underweight older people show a poorer HRQOL. The relationship between BMI and HRQOL in the older adults needs to be differentiated according to different characteristics of the population.Keywords: body mass index, BMI, health-related quality of life, HRQOL, “jolly fat” hypothesis, Chinese older adults
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