| | Thanks for posting this, Luke.
When I first heard that half of overweight folks may be heart-healthy (and a fourth of thin/normal weight folks are heart-sick) I thought to myself:
"I'll bet it's due to smoking and waist circumference! Smoking is simultaneously associated with lower weight and with heart disease risk, while central or android obesity is associated with risk regardless of weight."
I researched the primary article available here and found the following 5 key things to have been observed by this investigation:
=========
(1) being over age 34 is a risk, even adjusted for waist circumference
(2) current smoking is a non-statistically significant risk, whether adjusted for waist circumference or not
(3) 1-2 drinks a day is protective, but not when adjusted for waist circumference
(4) at least 7 MET-hrs/wk is protective, even adjusted for waist circumference
(5) every 5cm (~ 2") of waist circumference is an extra 15-23% risk
=========
So I was sort of wrong about smoking (at least it wasn't indicted here as being a significant or cardinal risk factor). But I was right about waist circumference being a key factor -- even to the point that it supercedes the normally-protective effect of 1-2 drinks a day! What I failed to capture in my initial outburst was exercise (I simply for forgot that it's a third weight-independent factor in heart disease risk). Seven MET-hours a week isn't much -- just a few miles on a treadmill -- but that's where risk-reduction starts.
Take-home message:
Beer -- even moderate amounts -- doesn't help if you have a beer-belly (so lose that gut before you pick up your next Heinekin or Corona). See if you can get 2" off of your waist (from exercise and moderating your dietary glycemic load). If you're a current smoker, quitting may help, but this study -- viewed in isolation from other research -- failed to prove it. And don't forget to exercise (even a little).
Ed
(Edited by Ed Thompson on 8/12, 8:22am)
|
|
