Every Excess Pound Gained Raises Risk of Death

Steady Rise in Death Risk as Overweight/Obesity Increases

By Daniel J. DeNoon
WebMD Health News
Reviewed by Laura J. Martin, MD

Dec. 1, 2010 -- Your risk of death rises steadily with every overweight pound you gain, a huge study funded by the National Institutes of Health confirms.

Even if you don't smoke and are in otherwise good health, your risk of death goes up 31% with every 5-point increase in BMI, a measure of body mass based on weight and height.

Just being a little bit overweight increases death risk. Compared to those with a normal-range BMI of 22.5 to 24.9:

• A BMI of 25.0 to 29.9 increased death risk by 13%
• A BMI of 30.0 to 34.9 increased death risk by 44%
• A BMI of 35.0 to 39.9 increased death risk by 88%
• A BMI of 40.0 to 49.9 increased death risk by 251%

Those figures are for women who do not smoke and who have no underlying disease. The risks are similar for men, note Amy Berrington de Gonzalez, DPhil, of the National Institutes of Health, and colleagues.

(More here.)