Overweight Vs Underweight

A recent Japanese study finds that slightly overweight people live up to 7 years longer than those who are considered underweight. This according to professor Shinichi Kuriyama who works at the Tohoku University's School of Medicine.

Skinny people as they grow older tend to have greater risks for pneumonia complications as well as weakened blood vessels according to the APF interview with professor Shinichi Kuriyama. Often pneumonia deaths are directly linked to Alzheimer disease which comes 3rd after heart disease and cancer as the leading cause of death for many older Americans.

The study was conducted using 12 years of data from 50,000 people between the ages of 40 and 79. The determination of whether a person was underweight or overweight came from Body Mass Index numbers, or (BMI).

A persons BMI is dependent on height and weight no mater the individuals sex or age. Considering the study was done in Japan we can look at the average Japanese male height of 5'7" and determine that 117.5 lbs would be considered underweight while 159.5 lbs would be considered overweight.

But the numbers from the study can be a bit misleading. Overweight does not always mean obese which is a leading cause of heart disease in many industrialized countries. And likewise, being underweight can also include individuals who are considered to be at a unhealthy weight.

"It's better that thin people try to gain normal weight, but we doubt it's good for people of normal physique to put on more fat," noted professor Kuriyama.

It appears there may be advantages to having a little extra weight as you grow older. Its all about balance as well as chance. Studies such as this one remind people that you can't always rely on assumptions and you can never predict lif'es outcome. And most importantly, the medical community is constantly evolving. So even studies such as this one may not be concrete, it may in fact end up take an interesting turn later down the road.