14 DAY TRIAL // A paper published in yesterday's issue of the journal PLOS Medicine argues that, according to evidence at hand, people suffering from extreme obesity have high chances to die at a rather young age.
Specifically, researchers say that, when compared to individuals whose body weight falls in the normal range, folks diagnosed with class III obesity, otherwise known as extreme obesity, are likely to die 14 years younger.
Writing in the journal PLOS Medicine, scientists explain that this drop in life expectancy in the case of people who are extremely obese is due to the fact that this medical condition ups the risk for a series of health problems.
More precisely, studies have shown that heart disease, stroke, diabetes, kidney and liver disease, and even cancer are more common among people suffering from class III obesity than they are among folks who pack just the right amount of body fat.
While researching how extreme obesity influences life expectancy, specialists with the National Cancer Institute in the United States compiled and analyzed data provided by 20 other previous investigations into how various risk factors affect lifespan.
The individuals whom these researchers labeled as extremely obese while conducting their investigation were those whose body weight exceeded the normal range for their height by over 100 pounds (45.35 kilograms).
To make sure they obtained accurate information, the researchers also looked at the subjects' BMI (body mass index), which they obtained by dividing a person's weight as expressed in kilograms to the square of their height as expressed in meters.
It was thus discovered that folks with a BMI of 40-44.9 were likely to die about 6.5 years younger due to health issues such as diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. What's more, a drop of about 14 years in life expectancy was documented in the case of those who had a BMI of 55-59.9.
“Given our findings, it appears that class III obesity is increasing and may soon emerge as a major cause of early death in this and other countries worldwide,” study senior author Patricia Hartge commented on these findings.
“While once a relatively uncommon condition, the prevalence of class III, or extreme, obesity is on the rise. In the United States, for example, six percent of adults are now classified as extremely obese,” researcher Cari Kitahara also wished to stress.
Just for the record, it need be said that folks of a normal weight have a BMI of 18.5-24.9. Overweight individuals, on the other hand, have BMIs ranging from 25.0 to 29.9. Lastly, class I, II and III obesity are linked to BMIs of 30.0-34.9, 35.0-39.9, and 40.0 or higher, respectively.