Healthy Eating Club Courses 
Can you be over-fat and healthy?
Can you be over-fat and healthy?
Yes, as long as you are physically active and eat well.
Yes, if you are not physically active and eat poorly.
Audio Transcripts
25,000 men were followed-up for 12 years to determine whether fitness or fatness is the main factor associated with death and/or disease. These men attended the Cooper Institute for Aerobics Research in Dallas Texas. The Director, Dr Steve Blair had access to the records of thousands of people who came to the institute each year to be health tested. These men were given a comprehensive medical examination including body fat and physical fitness (e.g treadmill time to exhaustion) and were followed up over many years to see who develops what diseases, and associated these with the baseline measure of fitness. The men were grouped into 3 different tertiles (thirds) according to their baseline fitness. The study showed that irrespective of whether a person is overweight or normal weight, is a smoker or non-smoker, has high or normal blood pressure, or has a history of heart problems in the family, the risk of death and disease is much lower in those who are physically fit, than those who are unfit. Estimates of the odds of dying of any cause show that these are almost twice as high in the unfit, lean individual than they are in the fit, overweight. For diabetes risk, which has typically been thought to be greater in the overweight, the risk ratios were up to 4 times lower in men with higher fitness levels irrespective of weight, age, parental history and even increased blood sugars. This study is good news for people having trouble losing weight. It is now apparent that big weight losses are not necessary to get the benefits of an active lifestyle. The key, it appears, is to be sufficiently active to develop good basic fitness e.g 30 min brisk walk daily.
Brodney S, Blair SN, Chong Do Lee. Is it possible to be overweight or obese and fit and healthy? In Bouchard C (ed). Physical activity and obesity, Human Kinetics, Champaign 111., 2000. J of Eating Disorders 2000; 28: 215-220.
There is emerging evidence from recent migrant groups in Australia that low death rates from CVD can occur even though there is unexpectedly high prevalences of identified CVD risk factors (e.g obesity, diabetes, hyperlipidaemia, inactivity, smoking). This has been called " a morbidity mortality paradox". It may be possible to develop a more 'benign' form of diabetes or obesity, or it may be possible to counteract CVD risk factors, depending upon the kind of foods consumed. For example, becoming overweight on a traditional Mediterranean diet rich in antioxidants and protective foods (e.g cereals, pulses, nuts, herbs, fish, fruit, wine and vegetables stewed in olive oil) may not be the same as becoming overweight on a typical high saturated fat Western diet. A common misconception is that thin people are necessarily healthier than overweight people yet the former may have got that way by eating an inadequate diet and/or by smoking excessively. All sedentary obese patients tend to be regarded equally with respect to morbidity and mortality; however, dietary pathways to achieve current weight may also need to be considered.
Kouris-Blazos A, Wahlqvist M, Wattanapenpaiboon N. 'Morbidity mortality paradox' of Greek-born Australians: possible dietary contributors. Aust J Nutr Diet 1999; 56 (2) : 97-107
Kouris-Blazos A, Wahlqvist M. Morbidity Mortality Paradox of Greek-born Australians: is it possible to develop a 'benign' form of obesity? Obesity Australia, Newsletter of the Australasian Society for the Study of Obesity, December 1999.
