Debunked: The Popular Myth About the Harm of Excess Weight

Danish scientists have questioned the conventional understanding of "normal weight." At the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Vienna, research results were presented showing that people with a body mass index (BMI) in the overweight range (25–30 kg/m²) and moderate obesity (30–35 kg/m²) did not die more frequently over five years of observation than those whose weight is considered "healthy" (22.5–25 kg/m²).

Surprisingly, it turned out that an increased risk of mortality is observed in people with BMI in the lower part of the normal range. Thus, with a BMI of 18.5–20, the probability of death was twice as high, and at 20–22.5 - 27% higher than in the reference group. According to researchers, this may be due to the fact that for some participants, weight loss was caused by illnesses.

With severe obesity (BMI above 40), the risk of death increased more than twofold, and at 35–40 kg/m² - by 23%.

"We found that mortality is higher not only with pronounced obesity or underweight, but also in people with low but formally normal BMI," noted the study leader Sigrid Bjerge Gribsholt from Aarhus University.

According to co-author Professor Jens Meldgaard Bruun, the key role is played not by the BMI indicator itself, but by the distribution of fat in the body. The most dangerous is visceral fat in the abdominal cavity, while fat deposits on the thighs and buttocks can be relatively safe.

The authors emphasize: obesity treatment should be personalized, taking into account not only BMI, but also the characteristics of fat tissue distribution and comorbidities.