Study: Physical Activity Benefits May Outweigh Effects of Obesity on CVD Risk

According to a recent study, the health benefits of physical activity may outweigh the negative effects of overweight and obesity on cardiovascular disease risk among middle-aged and elderly individuals.

Researchers assessed the relationship between physical activity, weight, and cardiovascular disease risk in a study of 5344 participants aged 55 years or older from the Rotterdam Study. Participants were identified as normal weight (BMI of 18.5–24.9  kg/m²), overweight (BMI of 25.0–29.9  kg/m²), or obese (BMI of ≥30  kg/m²), and were classified as having high or low physical activity levels. Normal weight participants with high physical activity levels were used as a reference group.
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During the 15-year follow-up, cardiovascular disease events occurred in 866 participants.

Overall, the researchers’ findings showed that obese and overweight individuals with low physical activity levels had a higher cardiovascular disease risk than normal weight participants with high physical activity levels (Hazard ratio [HR] 1.35 and 1.33, respectively).

Conversely, overweight and obese participants with high physical activity levels did not show a higher cardiovascular disease risk compared with weight participants with high physical activity levels (HR 1.03 and 1.12, respectively).

“Our findings suggest that the beneficial impact of physical activity on [cardiovascular disease] might outweigh the negative impact of body mass index among middle-aged and elderly people. This emphasizes the importance of physical activity for everyone across all body mass index strata, while highlighting the risk associated with inactivity even among normal weight people,” the researchers concluded.

—Melissa Weiss

Reference:

Koolhaas CM, Dhana K, Schoufour JD, Ikram MA, Kavousi M, Franco OH. Impact of physical activity on the association of overweight and obesity with cardiovascular disease: the Rotterdam Study [published online February 28, 2017]. Eur J Prev Cardiol. doi:10.1177/2047487317693952.