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posted by Fnord666 on Sunday March 18 2018, @04:46AM   Printer-friendly
from the weighty-research dept.

The idea that it might be possible to be overweight or obese but not at increased risk of heart disease, otherwise known as the "obesity paradox," has been challenged by a study of nearly 300,000 people published in in the European Heart Journal today (Friday).

This latest research shows that the risk of heart and blood vessel problems, such as heart attacks, strokes and high blood pressure, increases as body mass index (BMI) increases beyond a BMI of 22-23 kg/m2. Furthermore, the risk also increases steadily the more fat a person carries around their waist.

[...] Although it is already known that being overweight or obese increases a person's risk of CVD [cardiovascular disease], as well as other diseases such as cancer, there have also been studies that have suggested that, particularly in the elderly, being overweight or even obese might not have any effect on deaths from CVD or other causes, and may even be protective, especially if people maintain a reasonable level of fitness. This is known as the "obesity paradox."

However, the authors of the EHJ study say their results refute these previous, conflicting findings. "Any public misconception of a potential 'protective' effect of fat on heart and stroke risks should be challenged," said Dr Iliodromiti.

She continued: "This is the largest study that provides evidence against the obesity paradox in healthy people. It is possible that the story may be different for those with pre-existing disease because there is evidence that in cancer patients, for instance, being slightly overweight is associated with lower risk, especially as cancer and its treatments can lead to unhealthy weight loss.

[...] The researchers suggest that the previous confusion over the "obesity paradox" may be due to many factors that can confound results of studies. For instance, smoking changes the distribution of fat in the body, smokers may have lower weight as smoking depresses appetites and so BMI tends to be lower. Another reason could be that some people have existing but undiagnosed disease, which can often lower their weight but also makes them more likely to die prematurely.


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  • (Score: 5, Informative) by bzipitidoo on Sunday March 18 2018, @02:12PM (3 children)

    by bzipitidoo (4388) on Sunday March 18 2018, @02:12PM (#654464) Journal

    There's abundant (no pun intended) reason to be upset. The medical community has really dropped the ball on this problem, and totally blamed the victims. It's all fat people's fault for not eating right and not exercising enough. Or it's your bad genes, which is a total copout. Then it's your ancestors' fault, or biology and nature's fault, or God's fault, that you're fat, and no one and nothing need accept any blame or responsibility.

    This ignores how hard society has made it to eat right and exercise. Try to use a mode of transportation such as walking or bicycling. Walkways are so often unfinished, automobile drivers tend to resent the use of a street by anything human powered with its attendant slowness, and if that's not enough, cars are regarded as more than just transportation, they're also status symbols. People traveling on foot could mean that they have no car, and are the lowest status of all. Motorists might even roll down the window and spit on them as they drive past. And then there's food, and the efforts corporations have put into lying about the healthiness so they can keep on using the cheapest tasty ingredients, fat and sugar, plus salt, to great excess.

    Then there's the matter of all the chemicals that could be interfering with our bodies, messing up the signaling the body uses to maintain weight at as close to an ideal level as possible. Stuff like bisphenol A, bisphenol S, phthalates, and our old buddy lead. Most fat people aren't deliberately stuffing themselves, they're eating because they feel hungry, and they feel hungry more than they should. But industries that use these chemicals have been all too proactive in suppressing inquiry into the matter.

    Yet another interesting cause of obesity is artificial lighting.

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  • (Score: 0, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday March 18 2018, @04:09PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday March 18 2018, @04:09PM (#654516)

    All that shit is more excuses. Your post started out promising, then you did a complete 180 and started making excuses for your fat ass. It's the fault of car drivers. It's the fault of nebulous "toxins." It's the fault of corporations. It's the fault of "chemicals." No. It's your fault you're a fat ass.

    The only person who dropped the ball on your fat ass problem is your fat ass. Stop making excuses. Stop blaming everything except the person in the mirror. What do you expect your doctor to do when you don't follow his advice and just lose weight? He probably can't tell you bluntly that you're an unattractive lard ass. I'm telling you that you're a lard ass and you need to lose weight. Your extra weight isn't "insulation." You haven't just put on a few extra pounds for winter. It needs to come off, and you're the only person who can be that change.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 19 2018, @03:20AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 19 2018, @03:20AM (#654669)

      Well you may not be obese but you have an even worse personality disorder. Sadly those are harder to change, but its your own fault anyway.

  • (Score: 2) by FatPhil on Monday March 19 2018, @11:16AM

    by FatPhil (863) <pc-soylentNO@SPAMasdf.fi> on Monday March 19 2018, @11:16AM (#654803) Homepage
    > Motorists might even roll down the window and spit on them as they drive past.

    Only in shithole countries.
    --
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