Yo-Yo Dieting Is Dangerous, Especially For Normal Weight Women

Women whose weight fluctuates by more than 10 lbs. (4.5 kilograms) over the course of a decade, but who are not overweight, may have an increased risk of heart problems, a new study finds. In the study, researchers looked at data from nearly 160,000 postmenopausal women who took part in the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI), a large study that began in 1991 and is aimed at looking at the major health problems women face after menopause. The scientists found that among the women whose weight was within the normal range, weight fluctuations of more than 10 lbs. were associated with a 66 percent increase in the risk of dying from coronary heart disease over an 11-year period, compared with the women who had weight fluctuations of less than 10 lbs. Coronary heart disease is a condition in which substances such as fat block the blood vessels to the heart, decreasing blood flow to the organ. Interestingly, the association between weight fluctuations and heart problems was found only in women with weights in the normal range, and not in women who were overweight or obese, the researchers said. The study’s findings were presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2016. [Wonder Woman: 10 Interesting Facts About the Female Body] “These findings were actually similar to what is known in the medical literature as the obesity paradox,” Dr. Somwail Rasla, the study’s lead author and an internal medicine resident at Brown Uni...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news