Does Being Overweight Mean You're Unhealthy?

Doom Study

In a scary, government health warning-style study published online in the medical journal The Lancet, Oxford University researchers have equated obesity to be as dangerous as smoking. British researchers looked at 57 obesity studies done mostly in Europe and North America, following up on almost a million people for about 10 to 15 years. The studies used Body Mass Index (BMI) as the primary measurement, dividing weight in kilograms by height in metres squared. A person with a BMI of 25 to 29 is classified as overweight, while a BMI of 30 and above is classified as obese. Researchers found that people who were moderately obese (BMI 30 to 35) had their lives cut short by three years and that the morbidly obese (BMI 40+) had their lives cut short by almost 10 years, akin to smoking all your life. The study also stated that the obese are two-thirds more likely to die from heart attacks or stroke, four times more likely to die from diabetes, kidney or liver problems, and a sixth more likely to die of cancer.