Give this article a spin!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/20/extra-weight-live-longer_n_3962226.html
I find it interesting that the idea of a diachronic viewpoint regarding an individual's weight is a better indication of one's health. From a scientific standpoint it almost makes too much sense. Two examples come to mind - Blood pressure (BP) and Hb A1c (hemoglobin A1c or glycated hemoglobin).
It seems to be common knowledge that the measure of BP is not a static measurement. A patient can have really high blood pressure when visiting their PCP, while their past history indicates normal BP readings. Does the high BP mean the patient now has atherosclerosis or cardiovascular disease or other issues associated with hypertension?
Hb A1c is a blood test used to determine a patient's (typically with diabetes) average plasma glucose concentration. However a patient may have a positive test upwards of 9-10% when historically they are well controlled at 3-5%. Again does that mean this patient's diabetes is spiraling out of control because of this one test?
These questions may seem a little absurd, but using such questions in the context of weight gain is an interesting idea.
I do like how the author of this article slyly throws in the caveat of, "results applied only to those over 50". I feel such a statement should be incorporated in the title. Furthermore, they do not condone obesity as a positive, nor do they suggest rapid weight gain after 50 is a good thing, but instead gradual gains or being slightly overweight could be beneficial. Overall I liked the article - after much dissection. I suppose the message is moderation is a good thing, even if it leads to being slightly overweight - Is that a good message to send, given our current situation/epidemic...?
This was an interesting read and it makes sense if you think about it. It could benefit older adults to have a little bit of excess weight just in case they get an illness that causes them to lose that weight since they are at a higher risk of those illnesses. It is not a good message to send to younger people who are not at risk for those illnesses because considering the current situation with diabesity, younger people would definitely not benefit from the excess weight.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the article I feel like people who are obese and are trying to lose weight to be at a healthy range would be wasting their time for all the hard work to reach their goals since later in life they need to get fat all over again to be healthy/protective against invasion like cancer.
ReplyDeleteI wish they would specify "slightly overweight" which side of the line is that? Closer to normal, closer to obese, or directly in the middle? I also think normal and obese ranges sway depending on which expert you talk to. Especially with the use of BMI for measurement.
ReplyDeleteI agree they should specify over 50 in the title. It is in the "over 50" area of the Huffington post but if someone emailed the article to me I wouldn't understand what the point was just from the subject line.
What I get from this article is that the author is basically telling people over 50 that being "slightly overweight" is good and is beneficial to their health. However I disagree with this. I think whatever age you are, the healthiest choice you can make to extend your life expectancy is to eat a healthy balanced diet and exercise regularly. However, it is also important to note that even though you eat healthy and exercise regularly, you may not always have the "perfect" body. Some people just naturally have a higher BMI than normal. I have also heard that BMI indices are not known to be the most accurate measurements of one's health.
ReplyDeleteHere's an article that talks about the inaccuracy of BMI indices:
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/265215.php