'Overweight' Older People May Live Longer
02-18-2010, 02:25 AM
Sydney, Sydney, Australia (AHN) -- A new study out of Australia suggests having a few extra pounds in old age may help you live longer.
Leon Flicker, the lead researcher for the study, and a professor from the University of Western Australia, said in a statement that the findings add evidence that body mass index threshholds established by the World Health Organization for older adults are "overly restrictive."
Flicker and his colleagues recruited 4,677 men and 4,563 women for the study in 1996. The participants were followed for 10 years or until they died.
The end result was that the risk of death in people classified as being overweight based on body mass index was 13 percent lower than participants considered normal weight.
Flicker did differentiate between being overweight and obese. The reduction in risk of death was not seen in obese participants.
The study appears in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
Leon Flicker, the lead researcher for the study, and a professor from the University of Western Australia, said in a statement that the findings add evidence that body mass index threshholds established by the World Health Organization for older adults are "overly restrictive."
Flicker and his colleagues recruited 4,677 men and 4,563 women for the study in 1996. The participants were followed for 10 years or until they died.
The end result was that the risk of death in people classified as being overweight based on body mass index was 13 percent lower than participants considered normal weight.
Flicker did differentiate between being overweight and obese. The reduction in risk of death was not seen in obese participants.
The study appears in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
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