lessthanhalf
GLP-1 Specialist
Having lost a lot of weight and getting to a BMI of 24 , I was looking to see if there was any evidence that being any thinner than that had any health benefits and came across this paper.
"Cardiorespiratory fitness, body mass index and
mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis" Br J Sports Med 2025
It shows that being normal weight, overweight or obese but having high levels of cardiovascular fitness led to lower levels of cardiovascular disease and death compared to people of any weight who are unfit, with the unfit having risks 2 to 3 times higher, even the ones of normal weight. I assumed being fit was a good idea but I was a bit surprised by how strong the effect was. It is probably a bit more complicated than that given that the more obese you are the harder it is to do enough exercise to be fit. Obviously I need to do more exercise. There are other advantages to not being overweight but in terms of health this is a very clear signal.
"Cardiorespiratory fitness, body mass index and
mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis" Br J Sports Med 2025
It shows that being normal weight, overweight or obese but having high levels of cardiovascular fitness led to lower levels of cardiovascular disease and death compared to people of any weight who are unfit, with the unfit having risks 2 to 3 times higher, even the ones of normal weight. I assumed being fit was a good idea but I was a bit surprised by how strong the effect was. It is probably a bit more complicated than that given that the more obese you are the harder it is to do enough exercise to be fit. Obviously I need to do more exercise. There are other advantages to not being overweight but in terms of health this is a very clear signal.
