Doug Skrecky, <oberon@vcn.bc.ca>, writes:
> Title
> Cardiorespiratory fitness, body
> composition, and all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality in men.
> Source
> American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 69(3):373-80, 1999 Mar.
>
> "The all-cause mortality rate of fit, obese men was not significantly
> different from that of fit, lean men."
>
> Table 3
>
> Waist circumference category Multivariate RR
> and cardiorespiratory fitness level of death
>
> Low waist circumference (<87 cm)
> Fit 1.0
> Unfit 4.88
> Moderate waist circumference (87 to <99 cm)
> Fit 1.05
> Unfit 2.05
> High waist circumference (>99 cm)
> Fit 0.95
> Unfit 2.40
I am confused to see that among unfit men, the relative risk was 4.88 with waists less than 87 cm (39 in), but only 2.05 or 2.40 for waist sizes greater than that. Does that mean that lean unfit men have worse risks than fat unfit men?
> "In summary, we found that obesity did not appear to increase mortality
> risk in fit men. For long-term health benefits we should focus on
> improving fitness by increasing physical activity rather than relying
> only on diet for weight control. Aerobic exercise improves IHD risk
> factors, and increases in physical activity or fitness extend longevity.
> Although some studies show that there is no difference between diet and
> aerobic exercise in reducing IHD risk factors, or even report that diet
> is better than aerobic exercise for improving IHD risk factors in
> overweight men, our data show that fit men had greater longevity than
> unfit men regardless of their body composition or risk factor status.
> Obese men should be encouraged to increase their cardiorespiratory
> fitness by engaging in regular, moderate intensity physical activity;
> this should benefit them even if they remain overweight."
This is a very encouraging result. I have found it very difficult to lose fat and keep it off. I simply become too hungry. However it is easy to get fit, just a matter of exercising.
Thanks for posting this -
Hal