Fat and fit

Dr Douglas Street, Contributor

The word 'fat' is normally associated with ill health and lack of fitness. Being fat is thought to increase the risk of diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, heart attack, stroke, and the list goes on. In a bid to become slim, many become obsessed with weight loss and slimness and go on extreme diets.

Many people realise that this is not always an easy task and despite their dieting and exercising, fail to get to their ideal weight. But does it really matter?

There is no doubt that many people become overweight because they give scant regard to living a healthy lifestyle. They eat fat-laden foods and probably the only exercise they get is walking to the fridge! Certainly, this situation will set one up for the conditions that were mentioned. People of this type normally don't really live a long, healthy life.

There are people, though, who, regardless of all the good efforts that they put in, just don't get slim. It's natural for these people to wonder then, Is it worth it? Are their efforts in vain?

Studies have shown that fitness is what really matters. Having a body mass index (BMI) of 25 to 30 (with 20-25 being ideal) as long as you have a healthy, balanced diet and get regular exercise is good enough.

Just as there are people who will stay overweight despite their best efforts, there are people who will stay slim no matter how much they eat, or how little they exercise. These people may feel comforted by their slim physique, but that is not good enough.

Fitness, not fatness, matters

This situation is also likely to predispose a person to cardiovascular diseases, bearing in mind that it is fitness - not fatness - that really matters. As a matter of fact, even if your diet is less than perfect, improving and maintaining fitness will be of significant benefit. Of note, though, this cannot be said for people with a BMI over 30, because that wasn't addressed in the studies.

Another point is that certain types of exercise can be harsh on the joints of the lower limbs, so more weight on causes more wear and tear on these joints, so maintaining an ideal body weight does have its benefits.

Dr Douglas Street is a general practitioner and has private practices at Trinity Medical Centre; Trinity Mall at 3 Barnett Street, Montego Bay; and Omega Medical Centre, Plaza de Negril, Negril. Send feedback to drdougstreet@yahoo.com.