Many pro-fat advocacy groups insist that being fat is a social stigma, not a health risk. But a new study shows that’s not the case.
A study out of Uppsala University that followed 1,800 Swedish men for 30 years has lead scientists to the conclusion that it is not possible to be overweight or obese without exhibiting signs of metabolic syndrome.
Metabolic syndrome includes at least three health risk factors related to excess weight, such as high blood pressure, high blood sugar, or high cholesterol. Obese people tend to develop this syndrome if they don’t make major lifestyle changes. Some past studies have suggested that there isn’t always a connection between obesity and metabolic syndrome. However, according to this new report, the older studies simply hadn’t followed their subjects long enough.
The cardiovascular problems evident among the obese men in the Swedish study began to appear when many were in their mid- or late-sixties. The new data indicates that if you remain obese, it’s only a matter of time until your health takes a turn for the worse.
