Does being fat affect mortality rates?

Every time when you hear talk about losing weight, losing fats and getting slim, you will almost always hear about the association to a “healthier” life.

So many studies seem to indicate that “being fat” has an impact on mortality. But is this really true and can it be scientifically proven?
There is an article written in the International Journal of Obesity that attempts to get to the bottom of this. “Does obesity shorten life? The importance of well-defined interventions to answer causal questions” is the title of the piece.

It is interesting because the article challenges some of the assumptions behind these conclusions. Comparing BMI levels and then coming to a conclusion that fat people have a higher mortality rate is not really an accurate and scientific way to do a study.

There are many other factors besides the BMI that determines a person’s mortality. More importantly, it might very well be that the fact that a person is trying to lower his BMI that causes his mortality.

Undeniably, being over-weight does have clear health consequences. But the paper was trying to illustrate that many of these studies do not meet the strict requirements to make such a statement.

The good news of course, is that being over-weight does not mean that you are guaranteed to die earlier. Basic principles of good health, exercise, healthy diet and so on play an important role in your life.

When you are going to do something about losing fats, make sure you have a sensible diet plan and it would also be good to include some exercise programs. Consult an expert if you are not sure what to do. Over exerting yourself is just as bad as not doing any exercise.