PreventDisease.com - Even a Few Extra Pounds Can Raise Disease Risk



		Even a Few Extra Pounds Can Raise Disease Risk By Suzanne Rostler NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - As Americans continue to ''supersize'' their food, spend more time in front of the computer and TV, and watch the number on the scale climb steadily higher, a new study highlights the health hazards of even a few extra pounds. According to a report published in the July 9th issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, adults who weigh in on the high end of the healthy range may be at increased risk for a range of chronic disorders. Not surprisingly, the risks increased with the severity of weight gain and among the heaviest adults. The findings underscore the importance of maintaining a healthy body weight and suggest that doctors can play an important role, Dr. Alison E. Field of Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, and colleagues conclude. ``We observed that men and women in the upper half of the healthy weight category (i.e., BMI between 22 and 24.9) are significantly more likely than adults with lower BMIs to develop numerous health conditions, suggesting that clinicians should counsel their patients about how to maintain their weight, or increase their physical activity levels before they become overweight,'' Field told Reuters Health. Body mass index (BMI) takes into account a person's weight in relation to his or her height. It is calculated by dividing weight (in kilograms) by height (in meters squared). A person with a BMI of 25 of more is considered overweight, while someone with a BMI of 30 or over is considered obese. For example, a person 5' 6'' in height would need to weigh 155 pounds to have a BMI of 25 and 185 pounds to have a BMI of 30. Based on their findings, the authors recommend that adults try to maintain a BMI of between 18.5 and 21.9. In the study of nearly 124,000 middle-aged men and women, the researchers looked at the relationship between BMI and risk of developing type 2 diabetes, gallstones, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, colon cancer and high cholesterol over 10 years. Numerous studies have linked excess body weight with the risk of developing one or more of these disorders. Overweight women, or those with a BMI of 25 to 29.9, were significantly more likely to develop gallstones, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and heart disease, results show. Overweight adults were more than three times as likely to develop type 2 diabetes than their thinner peers, while very obese adults--those with a BMI above 35--were about 20 times more likely than healthy-weight adults to develop diabetes. What's more, people not traditionally considered to be overweight--those with a BMI of 22 to 24.9--were also at greater risk of developing at least one of the chronic diseases compared with their slimmer peers. According to the study, 32% of adults in the US are overweight and an additional 22.5% are obese. Both adults and children have been gaining weight steadily over the past three decades--a trend experts expect to persist. ``The health implications are enormous,'' Field said. ``As a consequence of the increasing prevalence of obesity in children, adolescents and adults, the prevalence of a variety of chronic diseases can be expected to increase.'' SOURCE: Archives of Internal Medicine 2001;161:1581-1586. Reference Source 89 For more information on how to prevent other diseases, use PreventDisease.com's "Quick Prevention Resources".