Obesity can trim 10 years off life

Adults who are obese — body mass index or BMI of 30 or more (about 40 or more pounds over a healthy weight) — may be cutting about three years off their lives, mostly from heart disease and stroke. [1]

In a study of 265 patients with pancreatic cancer, Dr. Jason B. Fleming, from the University of Texas, Houston, observed Cancer was 12 times more likely to be found to have spread to the lymph nodes in patients with BMIs of 35 of more, compared to those with lower BMIs. [2]

A total of 152 patients (53 percent) died during a median of 16 months of follow-up. Patients with a BMI higher than 35 survived a median of 13.2 months, compared with 27.4 months for those with a BMI of less than 23. [3]

Comparing patients in the highest and lowest BMI quintiles, the authors reported that patients with a BMI >35 had a tumor size of 3.0 cm versus 2.5 cm (P=0.04), and median of 2.5 nodes per patient versus none (P=0.001). [4]

[1]Obesity can trim 10 years off life USA TODAY March 17, 2009.
[2] Pancreas cancer surgery outcome worse with obesity Reuters March 17, 2009.
[3] Obesity Associated With Worse Outcomes After Pancreatic Cancer Surgery ScienceDaily (Mar. 16, 2009)
[4] Obesity Increases Risk of Node-Positive Pancreatic Cancer MedPage Today March 17, 2009