Obesity can raise risk of death by more than 90%: Study

Excess weight or obesity is more deadly than previously believed. According to a new study, it boosts risk of death by anywhere from 22 per cent to 91 per cent. The findings, published in the journal Population Studies, counter prevailing wisdom that excess weight boosts mortality risk only in extreme cases. The study showed that groups with higher body mass index (BMI) have higher mortality rates, contrary to numerous studies that show that heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes (which are often associated with being overweight) elevate mortality risk. “The conventional wisdom is that elevated BMI generally does not raise mortality risk until you get to very high levels, and that there are actually some survival benefits to being overweight,” said author Ryan Masters, Associate Professor of sociology at University of Colorado Boulder. He noted that BMI, which doctors and scientists often use as a health measure, is based on weight and height only and doesn’t account for differences in body composition or how long a person has been overweight