From Your Health Journal…..”The Inquirer had an interesting article that I found today, which will upset some people, or make others happy. New research has suggested that someone who is slightly overweight may be healthier than originally thought. The authors of the study suggested several possible reasons to explain why some extra weight may be good, but too much is bad, including that those with a few extra pounds may be more likely to receive “optimal medical treatment.” They said it was also possible that increased body fat provided metabolic benefits that protect the heart, or that having extra reserves of fat could be helpful for those whose sicknesses make it hard to eat. I have heard this ‘rumblings’ many times over the years, and still not sure about how I feel about this, as I would like to see more research on the topic. I am afraid some people may take this as a message that eating more and exercising less may be okay. Please visit the Inquirer’s web site (link provided below) to read the full article.”
From the article…..
Turns out a few extra pounds may not be such a bad thing, according to a new analysis of nearly three million adults that showed people who are overweight or slightly obese may live longer.
But experts were quick to caution that the possible benefits dropped off when the “few” extra pounds turned into many.
The researchers used data from nearly 100 studies from around the world, with health information from more than 2.8 million adults.
Among the sampled population, there were around 270,000 deaths within the study period.
Even after controlling for other factors, such as age, sex, smoking, those whose weight and height put them in the “overweight” category were six percent less at risk of dying than those in the “normal” category.
And those who were “slightly obese,” with heights and weights that gave them BMIs of 30 to 35, were five percent less at risk of dying in a given period.
But for those who were more significantly obese, with BMIs of 35 and higher, the mortality rate soared by 29 percent compared to “normal” weight subjects, according to the authors of the meta-analysis, published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
BMI, which stands for body-mass index, is calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by height in meters, squared.
The authors suggested several possible reasons to explain why some extra weight may be good, but too much is bad, including that those with a few extra pounds may be more likely to receive “optimal medical treatment.”
They said it was also possible that increased body fat provided metabolic benefits that protect the heart, or that having extra reserves of fat could be helpful for those whose sicknesses make it hard to eat.
Lead researcher Katherine Flegel, of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, published a controversial study in 2005 that indicated there was a link between excess weight and living longer.
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