Women’s Weight in 50s Predicts Health in 70s

In further support of a number of previous studies that have linked obesity to poor health status, Qu Sun, from Harvard School of Public Health (Massachusetts, USA), and colleagues have found that a woman’s weight at midlife may be a primary determinant of her health later in life.   In their study of 17,065 women who survived into their 70s who were enrolled in The Nurses’ Health Study, the team assessed the occurrence of chronic disease, cognitive function, physical function, and mental health at older ages.  Compared with women who were lean at age 50 and maintained a healthy weight as they aged (that is, having a BMI of 18.5 to 22.9), those women with a BMI of 30 or more had only about a 20% chance of being healthy and disease-free in their 70s.  The team also found that women who were overweight (BMI greater than or equal to 25) at age 18 and gained more than 22 pounds between 18 and 50 had the worst odds of healthy survival (as compared to women who were lean at age 18 and maintained a stable weight).   Observing that “[t]hese data provide evidence that adiposity in mid-life is strongly related to a reduced probability of healthy survival among women who live to older ages,” the researchers encourage “the importance of maintaining a healthy weight from early adulthood.”