Poor cardiorespiratory fitness may double the risk of early death, regardless of body weight. Digest
How fit you are may matter more than how much you weigh when it comes to your risk of dying early. A recent review and meta-analysis found that poor cardiorespiratory fitness increases the risk of early death from cardiovascular disease and other causes, regardless of body weight.
Researchers analyzed the findings of 20 studies investigating the effects of cardiorespiratory fitness and body weight on the rates of early death from cardiovascular disease and all other causes. The various studies included nearly 400,000 participants and compared the risks among people who were overweight or obese to those who were normal weight.
They found that overweight, fit people were about 50% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease and had roughly the same overall risk of early death as those with normal weight. Obese, fit people were 62% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease and had an 11% higher overall risk of early death, but these differences were not statistically significant.
You just missed this in your inbox
Every other week our Premium Members received this exact study plus Rhonda's practical commentary and 8+ other hand-picked papers.
However, being unfit was linked to a much higher risk of death. Normal-weight people who were unfit were about twice as likely to die from cardiovascular disease and all causes. Overweight, unfit people had roughly 2.5 times the risk of cardiovascular death and 82% higher overall risk of early death. Obese, unfit people had more than triple the risk of cardiovascular death and twice the risk of dying from any cause compared to those with normal weight.
These findings suggest that cardiorespiratory fitness robustly predicts the risk of early death from cardiovascular disease and other causes. Vigorous exercise, such as high-intensity interval training, is a great way to boost cardiorespiratory fitness and prevent early death. Learn more in this episode featuring Dr. Rhonda Patrick.