Shedding pounds in middle age could add years to your life, study finds

Shedding Pounds in Middle Age Could Add Years to Your Life, Study Finds

Losing just 6.5% of body weight in midlife may lower later risk of disease and premature death, new research shows.

Researchers found that people who lost about 6.5% of their body weight—without using weight loss drugs or surgery—reaped big health benefits later in life, CNN reported. For someone who weighs 180 pounds, that’s just shy of a 12-pound weight loss.

“Although correcting midlife overweight without surgical or pharmacological treatment is challenging, our results suggest that it is feasible and may be associated with decreased long-term risk of cardiovascular diseases, other chronic conditions, and mortality outcomes associated with overweight,” the study, led by Dr. Timo Strandberg, a professor of geriatric medicine at the University of Helsinki in Finland, concluded.

Published Tuesday in JAMA Network Open, it looked at data from nearly 23,000 adults across three time periods, going back to the 1960s.

Researchers grouped folks based on their body mass index (BMI) at the start and whether they gained, lost, or maintained weight. (BMI is an estimate of body fat based on height and weight.) Then, they checked hospital and death records.

People who lost weight were less likely to suffer from heart attacks, strokes, cancer, asthma, and lung diseases like COPD, the study found.

They were also less likely to die from any cause over the next 35 years.

It’s worth noting that this weight loss happened before popular weight loss medications and surgeries were available. That means most of the health improvements likely came from diet and exercise changes.

“The study is important because it provides evidence of the relationship between weight loss and both cardiovascular disease and mortality, which hasn’t been studied enough,” Dr. Aayush Visari, a clinical researcher at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Jersey, told CNN.

But both Visaria and Strandberg noted that BMI, used in the study to track people’s weight, is an imperfect measure. BMI doesn’t show where fat is stored or how much muscle someone has, which can affect health risks.

Other research has shown that belly fat and fat around organs may matter more than overall weight.

“There’s so many variables that might play into how someone’s body composition changes, even though maybe their weight might not change as much,” Visaria said.

While this study couldn’t prove that weight loss alone caused the health benefits, the lifestyle changes that led to it—like healthier eating and more exercise—also likely played a big role.

Experts recommend aiming for 150 minutes of moderate exercise (like walking or biking) each week, plus two days of muscle-strengthening activities.

Eating a Mediterranean-style diet rich in fruits, veggies, nuts, and olive oil can also help, CNN reported.

Lifestyle is always important when it comes to good health, meaning that you should strive to eat nutritious foods and be active even if you are using weight loss medications, Visaria added.

Strandberg said society also needs to make it easier for people to access healthy food and places to be active.

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