Obesity is more than a cosmetic problem; it poses many health risks and can shorten lifespan significantly.

Not only is obesity a risk factor for heart disease, diabetes and other chronic diseases, but it can take, on average, more than 10 years off a person’s life, according to two national studies. For black men, obesity may cut up to 20 years off of lifespan.

The studies used BMI, a measure of weight in relation to height, to gauge obesity. A BMI of over 45 was considered severely obese, 30 obese, and 25-29 overweight. White adults with a BMI of 23 to 25 and black adults with a BMI of 23 to 30 were found to live the longest.

Obesity is especially harmful among those in their 20s and 30s. Both studies found that severely obese white men aged 20 to 30 years lived about 13 years less than national estimates. Severely obese white women lived about eight years less.

Moreover, obese black men of this same age group were found to live some 20 years less than national estimates, and obese black women had shortened lives by about five years. These findings remained even after other risk factors, such as smoking, were removed.

These results coincide with findings of the second study, which examined 3,000 people between the ages of 30 and 49. It was found that obese, non-smoking women lived seven fewer years than normal-weight, non-smoking women, while obese, non-smoking men lived about six fewer years than normal-weight, non-smoking men.

Obesity reduced life expectancy by about seven years among smokers. Moreover, the study found that obese female smokers lived 13 fewer years and obese male smokers nearly 14 fewer years than healthy-weight, non-smoking adults.

Researchers say that the findings indicate a public health crisis, as rates of overweight and obesity continue to rise. The results may urge doctors and individuals to pay more attention to maintaining healthy weights as the measured risks of obesity become clear.

Obesity and related diseases, such as type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, may be preventable, however. Currently, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends 30 minutes of exercise per day to maintain good health, 60 minutes per day to lose weight.

JAMA January 8, 2003;289:187-193, 229-230

Annals of Internal Medicine January 7, 2003;138;24-32

Dr. Mercola's Comments:

Here you have it -- more evidence that normalizing your weight can add years to your life. Of course, this is something that most people already knew. However, in my experience it is not the adding of years to your life that motivates people to change. Most people want to normalize their weight because of a desire to feel and look better right now. Fortunately, when you follow the nutrition plan, and individualize it with Metabolic Typing, this occurs almost immediately. With Metabolic Typing, if you aren’t feeling full of energy or if you have food cravings, it is a major clue that you are not eating the proper foods or the correct ratio of macronutrients (fats, carbs, proteins) to give your body the energy it needs. In this case, you would need to modify the type of foods you are eating or the ratio at which you eat them. By now many people are aware that over two-thirds of our country’s population is either obese or overweight. For most, the problem is too many grains and sugars in the diet. No matter what nutritional type you are, if you are overweight you will need to discontinue eating all grains and sugars until you normalize your weight. I just finished the final editing of my book, The No Grain Diet, which will be available April 28. In the book, I go into an extensive discussion of how to normalize your weight and attain health through the use of practical solutions. This book involved five months of hard work that consumed virtually all of the free time I had left after running a medical practice and editing a Web site. I am sure that many people will be as excited as I am to finally have a practical, common sense approach to help relieve one of the major health challenges facing our nation today: the overweight epidemic. One of the solutions is to know your Metabolic Type as this will help you fine-tune your biochemistry to defeat the challenge of obesity. Exercise is another powerful tool to optimize your health and is especially important for weight loss. For more information you can review my current exercise recommendations. Related Articles: Modest Weight Loss May Cut Heart Risks of Obesity Metabolic Syndrome: An Epidemic Among Overweight Non-exercisers The Scientific Definition of Obesity and its Dangers