People aged 65 to 74 are five times more likely to be hospitalized and 90 times more likely to die than those aged 18 to 29

The US President, Donald Trump, is 74 years old and overweight, which automatically puts him in the category of high-risk patients and puts the state of health in the spotlight, especially now when he fell ill from the coronavirus, a month before the U.S. Presidential election.

The positive diagnosis for the White House tenant and the First Lady, Melania Trump, blocks the process of the – already chaotic – election campaign, which for many is essentially a referendum on its handling of the health crisis.

Trump’s age, weight and gender make him more vulnerable than his wife, who is 24 years younger. Even at his age, the majority of patients show only mild or moderate symptoms, but researchers still have no answers because some of them continue to be seriously ill.

“The coronavirus looks like it’s playing Russian roulette,” said Brian Oliver, a respiratory specialist at Sydney University of Technology. “Everyone can be affected very badly, but we know that older people with underlying diseases are more likely to be affected and get seriously ill.”

It was not immediately clear if the president had any symptoms, but the first lady tweeted that she and her husband were “feeling well”. Although Trump has rejected some precautionary measures such as the mask, increasing the likelihood of further transmission to Washington, he and Melania Trump plan to remain in the White House “during their recovery,” the president’s personal physician said.

People aged 65 to 74 are five times more likely to be hospitalized and 90 times more likely to die than those aged 18 to 29. Men account for 54% of Covid-19 deaths in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Body mass index

Trump’s body mass index, which is based on height and weight and is used by doctors to measure body fat, also poses potential risks. During the annual check-up in June, the president with a height of 1.90 weighs 110 kg, giving the body mass index 30.5.

Although experts warn that the link between obesity and Covid mortality is not entirely correlated, an analysis of global data published in August showed that obese people were 48% more likely to die from Covid-19 than people with body mass index in the normal range.

Among about 17,000 patients treated for coronavirus in the United States, more than three-quarters were obese, according to a separate study.

“Men are at greater risk, men with unhealthy lifestyles are at greater risk and it is not only obesity that is a risk factor, but also other factors that go hand in hand with obesity, especially cardiovascular disease and diabetes,” said Gary Wittert professor of medicine and director of the Freemason Foundation Center for Men’s Health at the University of Adelaide.

Trump will, of course, have access to top medical care and health care, and with an annual salary that puts him in the top tier of Americans, he belongs to a demographic that did well during the pandemic.

The president also does not drink or smoke, which will improve his overall health. The risk of serious illness or death increases sharply in elderly patients with pre-existing conditions such as heart disease or cancer.