Being Overweight: Not Really a Health Risk at All?

There seems to be nothing but contradictions and confusion about the health risks of being "overweight". It started with the CDC telling us that 400,000 deaths per year can be blamed on obesity. We've since discovered that the CDC got this woefully wrong.

The International Herald Tribune expounds even further, pointing to (what it considers) "the newest and most comprehensive study of the impact of obesity".

"The take-home message from this study it seems to me is unambiguous," he said. "What is officially deemed overweight these days is actually the optimal weight."

In other words, it's better to be slightly overweight than it is to be "normal". The apparent health risks of being overweight (according to this study) only seem to apply to the extremely overweight, or the very thin.

So after all that's said and done - carrying some fat is okay -- in fact better than being too thin.

This exposes the anomalies and inconsistencies that exist when measuring a "normal" weight. The standards that health authorities use simply do not work for everyone. Perhaps the bottom line comes down to your health - if you experience health problems related to being overweight - it's time to slim down. If you don't have any health problems, does it matter how much fat you are carrying.

Lots to think about here.