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Lose Weight, Gain Years!
Mpls., MN May 20, 2003: According to a study published in the January, 2003 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, being overweight in middle age cuts years off your lifespan. People who are overweight at 40 are likely to die at least three years sooner than those who are slim. This means, in terms of life expectancy, being overweight during middle age is just as bad as smoking, researchers say. The heavier you are the more years you shave off your life expectancy. Add smoking to excess weight and you double your loss.
Nonsmokers who were classified as overweight, but not obese, lived an average of three years less than slender peers. Obese people died even sooner. Obese female nonsmokers lost on average 7.1 years, while men lost 5.8 years. For overweight smokers, the results were even worse. Obese female smokers died 7.2 years sooner than normal-weight smokers, and 13.3 years sooner than normal-weight nonsmoking women. Obese male smokers lived 6.7 years less than trim smokers, and 13.7 years less than normal-weight nonsmokers.
Scientists have known for many years that obesity cuts longevity but few large-scale studies have been able to pinpoint how many years obesity reduces a person's life span. The data for the current study comes out of the vital statistics information collected from 3,457 volunteers in Framingham, Mass., from 1948 to 1990. The study was published in the January 7, 2003 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine. Read the complete study at: Annals of Internal Medicine: http://www.annals.org.
A similar study published in the January 8, 2003 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association found morbid obesity (defined as a BMI of 40 or greater) could decrease life span as much as the combination of moderate obesity (BMI 30-35) plus smoking. A Caucasian male aged 20-30 with a BMI of 45, and no history of smoking could cut his life expectancy by 13 years or 22% of his remaining expected life span. Under the same conditions, a black male, could lose as much as 20 years, or 40% of his remaining expected life span. Morbidly obese women who never smoked decreased their life expectancy by 8 years, as compared with a 7.2 year loss of life expectancy for obese female smokers.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about two-thirds of American adults are overweight or obese. Studies have also shown people are getting fatter at a younger age, thus increasing the risk of obesity related premature deaths.
Based on the above information and alarming statistics on how many years of life people lose to obesity, it is no surprise to see the following quote: "The smoking epidemic in the Western world is waning; however, a new fear should be the increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity in young adults, which heralds another potentially preventable public health disaster." Peeters, et al Annals of Internal Medicine, Jan 2003.
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