Is fat unattractive?

A recent study in The Lancet confirmed that obesity is linked with twice the risk of death or severe illness as smoking a pack a day for decades

In any event I've been running simulations with massive databases worldwide and the statistics concerning insurance payouts to smokers vs fatties are significant to over 99% - more than sufficient for all mathematical applications in this field.

The data is corrupted by any number of factors, unfortunately, so I can't answer you with more precision than that at this point, other than to say ceteris paribus any BMI over 20 is reason for caution:)

dora - really?

<sigh>

I have to ask. Slappy, is 5'5" and 145 overweight?

It depends on where the fat is located. Boobs are almost all fat.

BMI Does Not Predict MICU Outcome
14 Jun 2005

Patients who are obese are not at greater risk of morbidity, mortality, or increased costs in the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU), according to new findings. Researchers in Allentown, PA, recorded the height, weight, age, hospital length of stay, medical complications, and other variables of 813 patients admitted to the MICU between January 1997 and August 2001.

The study subjects were divided into five groups: underweight (BMI less than 20.0), normal weight (BMI = 20.0-24.9), overweight (BMI = 25.0-29.9), obese (BMI = 30-39.9), and severely obese (BMI = 40.0 or more).

No significant difference was found between the MICU length of stay, hospital length of stay, need for mechanical ventilation or number of days on the ventilator, mortality rate, and costs for obese and very obese patients when compared to the other three groups.

The only significant difference found was that the patients who were severely obese were more likely to be female and younger than the obese patients. The study appears in the June issue of CHEST, the peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Chest Physicians.

News briefs from the journal CHEST June 2005

American College of Chest Physicians
http://www.chestnet.org

June 15, 2005
Report: Obesity And Smoking Cause Premature Aging

A new study isn't intended to scare anyone, having only sampled the white blood cells of about 1,100 healthy white women. However, if you are overweight and smoke, then according to the new report, you are most likely aging faster than your slimmer non-smoking counterparts, according to published reports.

Scientists have reportedly produced the first direct evidence that the cells of obese women or those who smoke are "older" than those of other women, suggesting that these factors accelerate aging, new research shows.

A team of researchers from the United States and Britain say people who smoke cigarettes or are overweight have shorter telomeres - the caps on chromosomes - which makes them biologically older than their non-smoking, leaner counterparts, according to wire reports.

Telomeres shorten each time a cell divides.

The loss is associated with aging, which is why telomeres are thought to hold the secrets of youth and the aging process. As telomeres get smaller, the chromosomes can become unstable and increase the risk of mutation, according to wire reports.

The investigators reportedly recruited nearly 1200 women from the UK aged 18-76 years into the study. 119 of the women were obese, with a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30, and 85 women had a BMI under 20. 531 women had never smoked, 369 were ex-smokers, and just over 200 were current smokers.

Skeptics question the findings, saying the researchers had failed to rule out the possibility that other key factors could be responsible for the results. People who are overweight, for example, may not get enough exercise, which could account for premature aging.

Other researchers said the findings are provocative, and could lead to the capacity to discern the effects of fat on a molecular level at a time when public health experts are concerned about the number of overweight people.

More than two-thirds of Americans are overweight, including about one-third who are obese, raising concern the nation could be facing an epidemic of weight-related illnesses, according to published reports.

Obesity, which affects about 300 million people worldwide, increases the risk of diabetes, heart disease, stroke and several other illnesses.

Researchers have shown that cigarette smokers die on average 10 years sooner than non-smokers, but that kicking the habit can halve the risk.

Smoking is a leading cause of lung cancer and COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis.

It also increases the risk of heart disease.