New York, Dec 12 (IANS): Completing a four-year degree course is likely to add more than 4.5 kgs to your body weight, along with the associated health risks, a study says.

"Our study shows that there is concerning weight gain among college students that happens over all four years they are in college," said the study's lead author Lizzy Pope, Assistant Professor at University of Vermont in the US.

The study measured student weight and body-mass-index at the beginning and end of students' first and second semesters and again at the end of their senior year.

At the beginning of their college careers, the mean weight of the students in the study was about 147 pounds (66.6 kgs). By the end of senior year, it had increased to about 157 pounds (71 kgs).

The extra weight translates to increased health risk, according to the study.

Twenty-three percent of the students in the study were overweight or obese as they were starting college.

By the end of senior year, 41 percent were in that category, a 78 percent increase, published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.

Obese young adults are at risk for a variety of health conditions, including diabetes, hypertension, polycystic ovarian syndrome and pscho-social distress, Pope said.

"This study and earlier ones suggest that college students are prone to weight gain that can impact their health in the present and even more significantly in the future," Pope pointed out.