Overweight warning: More than exercise needed

"Even high quantities of physical activity are unlikely to
fully reverse the risk of coronary heart disease in overweight
and obese women without concurrent weight loss," Dr. Amy
Weinstein and colleagues at Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess
Medical Center reported.

"Regardless of body weight, (the findings) highlight the
importance of counseling all women to participate in increasing
amounts of regular physical activity and maintaining a healthy
weight to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease," they
concluded.

The study, appearing in the Archives of Internal Medicine,
was based on information from a study of nearly 39,000 women
that began in 1992 and traced a number of health issues.

The researchers said 34 percent of the women in the study
were physically active based on government guidelines, 31
percent were overweight and 18 percent were obese.

In the end, 948 women were diagnosed with heart disease.
Active women with normal weight had the lowest risk of
developing heart problems while there was a slightly higher
risk for those with normal weight who were not active.

The risk was next highest for active women who were either
overweight or obese, and highest for similar women who were
inactive.

Fat cells produce chemicals that can speed up hardening of
the arteries and increase inflammation, the researchers said,
harming blood vessels, while physical activity makes for
healthier blood vessels and reduces the risk of blood clots.

(Reporting by Michael Conlon; editing by Maggie Fox and
Bill Trott)

source:news.yahoo.com