Comments on: Bodyweight and Mortality: A Dubious Relationship http://www.naturalcondition.com/2008/03/26/bodyweight-and-mortality-a-dubious-relationship/ Informative articles on life, health, and medicine, by Matthew E. Nolan Thu, 21 Aug 2008 04:08:21 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Matthew E. Nolan http://www.naturalcondition.com/2008/03/26/bodyweight-and-mortality-a-dubious-relationship/#comment-63 Matthew E. Nolan Thu, 27 Mar 2008 02:55:16 +0000 http://www.naturalcondition.com/2008/03/26/bodyweight-and-mortality-a-dubious-relationship/#comment-63 Rene: Are you saying in your last sentence that there is really no reason for national alarm about obesity? If so, I would have to disagree. Setting the mortality associated with obesity aside (the paper I wrote about certainly confuses the issue), there is an enormous economic cost for overweight and obesity: as much as $78 billion in the US. While it is not conclusive that hefty people are much more likely to die of their condition, they unequivocally suck more dollars out of the healthcare system. See <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity/economic_consequences.htm" title="http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity/economic_consequences.htm" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">this report by the CDC</a> for more information. Rene:
Are you saying in your last sentence that there is really no reason for national alarm about obesity? If so, I would have to disagree. Setting the mortality associated with obesity aside (the paper I wrote about certainly confuses the issue), there is an enormous economic cost for overweight and obesity: as much as $78 billion in the US. While it is not conclusive that hefty people are much more likely to die of their condition, they unequivocally suck more dollars out of the healthcare system.

See this report by the CDC for more information.

]]> By: Rene http://www.naturalcondition.com/2008/03/26/bodyweight-and-mortality-a-dubious-relationship/#comment-62 Rene Thu, 27 Mar 2008 01:43:26 +0000 http://www.naturalcondition.com/2008/03/26/bodyweight-and-mortality-a-dubious-relationship/#comment-62 The more important figures are those that adjusted for the confounding factor of smoking. Those clearly show a reduced mortality among both overweight and mod obese (most of the people labeled obese in our country) to age 60. With advancing age, obesity, even the most obese, was irrelevant to mortality, whereas being underweight is associated with a notably greater risk. But the bottom line is that all of these relative risks are statistics and not impressive enough to support any of the obesity hype. The more important figures are those that adjusted for the confounding factor of smoking. Those clearly show a reduced mortality among both overweight and mod obese (most of the people labeled obese in our country) to age 60. With advancing age, obesity, even the most obese, was irrelevant to mortality, whereas being underweight is associated with a notably greater risk. But the bottom line is that all of these relative risks are statistics and not impressive enough to support any of the obesity hype.

]]> By: Marilyn http://www.naturalcondition.com/2008/03/26/bodyweight-and-mortality-a-dubious-relationship/#comment-61 Marilyn Wed, 26 Mar 2008 19:47:55 +0000 http://www.naturalcondition.com/2008/03/26/bodyweight-and-mortality-a-dubious-relationship/#comment-61 If you search in cardiology journals, you will find a number of studies of people with heart disease that show lower risk of events/mortality for people with higher BMIs. So far as I know, no one has come up with an explanation for these results. If you search in cardiology journals, you will find a number of studies of people with heart disease that show lower risk of events/mortality for people with higher BMIs. So far as I know, no one has come up with an explanation for these results.

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