Thinner Not Always Better When It Comes to Heart Health, Study Finds

Monday , August 11, 2008

CHICAGO —

You can look great in a swimsuit and still be a heart attack waiting to happen. And you can also be overweight and otherwise healthy.

A new study suggests that a surprising number of overweight people — about half — have normal blood pressure and cholesterol levels, while an equally startling number of trim people suffer from some of the ills associated with obesity.

The first national estimate of its kind bolsters the argument that you can be hefty but still healthy, or at least healthier than has been believed.

The results also show that stereotypes about body size can be misleading, and that even "less voluptuous" people can have risk factors commonly associated with obesity, said study author MaryFran Sowers, a University of Michigan obesity researcher.

"We're really talking about taking a look with a very different lens" at weight and health risks, Sowers said.

In the study, about 51 percent of overweight adults, or roughly 36 million people nationwide, had mostly normal levels of blood pressure, cholesterol, blood fats called triglycerides and blood sugar.

Almost one-third of obese adults, or nearly 20 million people, also were in this healthy range, meaning that none or only one of those measures was abnormal.

Yet about a fourth of adults in the recommended-weight range had unhealthy levels of at least two of these measures. That means some 16 million of them are at risk for heart problems.

It's no secret that thin people can develop heart-related problems and that fat people often do not. But that millions defy the stereotypes will come as a surprise to many people, Sowers said.

Even so, there's growing debate about the accuracy of the standard method of calculating whether someone is overweight. Health officials rely on the body mass index, a weight-height ratio that does not distinguish between fat and lean tissue. The limits of that method were highlighted a few years ago when it was reported that the system would put nearly half of NBA players in the overweight category.

A number of experts say waist size is a more accurate way of determining someone's health risks, and the study results support that argument.

Dr. Robert Eckel, a former American Heart Association president and professor of medicine at the University of Colorado, said the new research may help dismiss some of the generalizations that are sometimes made about weight and health.

Study co-author Judith Wylie-Rosett emphasized that the study shouldn't send the message "that we don't need to worry about weight." That's because half of overweight people do face elevated risks for heart disease, explained Wylie-Rosett, a nutrition researcher at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.

But, for those without elevated risks, losing weight "might be important only from a cosmetic perspective," she said.

To arrive at the estimates, scientists analyzed nationally representative government surveys involving 5,440 people age 20 and over, and extrapolated to calculate nationwide figures.

The new study, appearing in Monday's Archives of Internal Medicine, used government surveys from 1999 to 2004 that included lab tests and height and weight measurements. Participants reported on habits including smoking and physical activity.

In all weight categories, risk factors for heart problems were generally more common in older people, smokers and inactive people. Among obese people who were 50 to 64, just 20 percent were considered healthy compared with half of younger obese people.

The results underscore how important exercise is for staying healthy, even for people of healthy weight, Wylie-Rosett said.

The authors noted that fat tissue releases hormones and other substances that affect things like blood vessels, cholesterol and blood sugar. The results suggest this interaction varies among overweight and obese people, the authors said.

The results also add to mounting evidence that thick waists are linked with heart risks.

Among people of healthy weight in the study, elevated blood pressure, cholesterol and other factors were more common for people with larger waists or potbellies. This often signals internal fat deposits surrounding abdominal organs, which previous research has shown can be especially risky.

Similarly, among overweight and obese adults, those in the "healthy" category tended to have smaller waists than those with at least two risk factors.

Dr. Lewis Landsberg, a Northwestern University obesity expert, noted that the research didn't look at heart disease, and that not everyone with high risk factors develops heart problems.

Still, he said, the study shows that waist measurements can help assess health.

eh

This is true.
My roomate was very skinny and couldn't pass an Air Force 'ERGO' health test to save his life.



However, let's face it--Being obese or overweight is much worse.
That's why I go to the gym and workout, and why I'm watching my intake.

Nobody exercises to get fatter.

This isn't new news and it's what many of us have said on here time and time again.

It's your lifestyle that comes into play the most - what you eat, if you're active, etc. not your metabolism.

As well, for those that are overweight, it has more to do with where they carry their weight. Visceral fat (belly fat) is what puts you at risk. A fat ass or thighs isn't gonna kill you....it might put extra strain on joints and such, might aggrivate arthitis, but it's not linked to serious heart disease.

On another note...I just heard this morning that the whole "Married couples live longer" bullshit isn't the case anymore. Single people are catching up and living longer!

CarrieLee said:

Actually, historically single women live longer than married women, yet married men live longer than single men.

CarrieMpls said:

That's interesting.

Because the wife takes care of the husband therefore making him live longer and shortening her life in the meantime?

JustErin said:

Pretty much.

That and childbirth was the leading cause of death for women up until recent times.

JustErin said:

But there are still folks who won't or don't believe it. They believe the stereotypes the article discusses.

..
[Edited 8/12/08 8:32am]

applekisses said:

Ya well, whatever. Let them think that.

I'm someone who is convinced that I am killing myself because I am overweight...but every time I talk to my doctor about it he totally downplays it, thinks it's no big deal because I'm super healthy. To me, my belly is fat enough to be concerned (since I never had a tummy before my son) and quite frankly it pisses me off that he poo poos it so much. It's almost like some think, well...people are getting fatter in general...but who cares as long as they're 'healthy'.

But there are some overweight people with big fat bellies who are convinced that they are healthy as well and will stay healthy. They think they are not at risk. That's nuts to me.

Plus, I don't care what anyone says, when you carry extra weight you feel the difference. Life does become harder physically in many ways. I feel the difference. I may not be at risk for heart disease, but I sure don't feel as well or even as 'healhty' as I used to.

JustErin said:

It is a new study, however.

Genesia said:

Yes, you're right.

JustErin said:

I love it when I go walking or hiking with someone who is thinner than me or who claims to be more physically fit - it's funny (ironic) to me to see them huffing and puffing while we're walking and talking and I'm having no issues whatsoever.
[Edited 8/12/08 8:50am]

CarrieMpls said:

Just what I heard this morning, Carrie...just what I heard!

applekisses said:

Well, it is also true that people who have carried extra weight for some time tend to be stronger people (physically, cardiovascular wise) in general because they have more to carry around...or so my doctor told me.

in other news, i'm back into my skinny pants (well, skinny for me anyway) from three years ago!

emm said:

Awesome! Congrats!

emm said:

Ahh don't you just love that? I actually wore a pair of pants the other day that I had from high school!! They didn't fit the same way, but they zipped up!

JustErin said:

This is very true, especially for men. Belly fat is bad for women, too but it is even more dangerous for men and can even influence your hormone levels, for instance reduce testosterone levels.

JustErin said:

That makes sense. I've always been a bigger person (frame, height, etc. and big doesn't always = fat) and that's probably why.

applekisses said:

This is the case with me. My cousin has always been very thin,and I have always been overweight,but I am working on that...anyway,we went to the gym together once,and I was walking on the treadmill,and doing the stairclimber without any problems,and she could'nt even finish the same time I had done on the treadmill. I have always been active though.

EmeraldSkies said:

Weight is just one aspect of a person's body. There are countless factors that determine overall health.

True. Thin doesn't mean healthy, it just means thin.
And some of the points already made are the ones I would have brought out as to what determines healthiness.

I'm 6'0 and I'd like to weigh about 150 lbs.

applekisses said:

Mysterioso said:

I'm 5'5" and I'd like to weigh about 150 lbs.

CarrieMpls said:

Sometimes, I wonder if a number can be misleading, though. Like, 150 could look pretty small on a person who is 5'5. Like really compact (Depends on where the bulk of the weight is, though. I mean, I guess.). I just think that it has to do with what looks best on "YOUR" body (In general.). Like, I know of someone who is basically an inch shorter than me and weighs about 125 lbs. but doesn't look like he weighs that much. I'm 170 and it's not good enough for me. The smaller I am, the better I look, it seems.

CarrieMpls said:

I'm 5'4" and i'd KILL to weight 150