New research has just plunged a dagger through the core of the mentality that you can be ‘fat but fit’.
According to a bomb study published Thursday in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, a journal of the European Society of Cardiology, physical activity does nothing to cancel out the harmful effects of excess body weight on cardiovascular health.
The findings contradict previous studies that concluded that maintaining physical activity can reduce the effects of extra body weight on heart health.
“One cannot be ‘fat but healthy’,” said the study’s author Alejandro Lucia, a professor of exercise physiology at the European University in Madrid.
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“One can not be ‘fat but healthy’,” said the study’s author Alejandro Lucia, a professor of exercise physiology at the European University of Madrid. “This was the first nationwide analysis that showed that the fact that being regularly active is unlikely to eliminate the detrimental effects on the health of excess body fat. Our findings refute the idea that a physically active lifestyle can completely negate the harmful effects of being overweight and obese. “
Lucia cites previous research that has suggested that adults and children may have a “fat-but-fit” style in a kind of cardiovascular present than those who are “thin but unfit” – adding that people of the real priority has strayed.
‘This has led to controversial proposals for health policy [prioritize] physical activity and fitness above weight loss, “he said. Our study sought to elucidate the relationship between activity, body weight, and heart health. “
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This study surveyed data from 527,662 working Spanish adults, all insured by a large occupational risk prevention company. Thirty-two percent of the participants were women; The mean age was 42.
They are categorized by activity level and body weight – about 42 percent are classified as normal weight with a body mass index (BMI) of 20 to 24.9. About 41 percent were overweight, with a BMI of 25 to 29.9, while 18 percent were considered obese, with a BMI of 30 or higher. The majority of the study’s pool, more than 63 percent, was physically inactive. About 24 percent were regularly active and just over 12 percent were considered insufficiently active.
The research team examines the link between BMI, level of physical activity and high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes – all three of which pose major risks for heart attack and stroke.
They found that physical activity in all BMI measurements was linked to a lower probability of diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure compared to no exercise.
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“It tells us that everyone, regardless of their body weight, needs to be physically active to protect their health,” Lucia said.
So yes, being active is important. But size still matters.
Regardless of activity levels, the overweight and obese participants had higher cardiovascular risks than those with normal body weight. Compared to inactive adults with a normal weight, physically active obese people are still about twice as likely to have high cholesterol, four times more likely to have diabetes and five times more likely to have high blood pressure.
“Exercise does not seem to compensate for the negative effects of excess weight,” he added. “This finding was also observed in both men and women. [analyzed] separate. “
Lucia concluded that both obesity and inactivity should be combated.
“It has to be a joint struggle,” he said. “Weight loss should remain a primary target for health policies, along with the promotion of active lifestyles.”
However, the study makes no mention or recommendations for diet – and when it comes to an example of physical activity, Lucia said ’30 minutes a day is better than walking 15 minutes a day. ‘
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Sean Heffron, MD, a cardiologist at the Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at NYU Langone Health, emphasized that obesity is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease – as is inadequate physical activity – but weight loss requires a two-part formula.
“Exercise in itself is not the way to lose weight,” he said. ‘It’s complementary to an ideal body weight’, but improving your diet is the other piece of the puzzle.
This content originally appeared in The New York Post.