Remember Fat But Fit? Good. Now Forget It.

Remember fat but fit–the assertion that those of us who carry a few extra pounds were just as healthy as those who don’t?  Well, forget it, because a new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests researchers got it wrong, again. The Boston Globe reports that the study, which tracked almost 38,000 women, considered height, weight and
amount of weekly physical activity, including walking,
jogging, bicycling and swimming. Women were
considered active if they followed government-recommended guidelines
and got at least 30 minutes of moderate activity most days of the week,
including brisk walking or jogging. Women who got less exercise than
that were considered inactive. Researchers found that, compared
with normal-weight active women, the risk for developing heart disease
was 54 percent higher in overweight active women and 87 percent higher
in obese active women. By contrast, it was 88 percent higher in
overweight inactive women; and 2 1/2 times greater in obese inactive
women.
Read more in the Boston Globe.