CONVENTIONAL WISDOM:
Maintaining a lower weight reduces disease risk, according to most authorities at the CDC and the National Institutes of Health. They recommend weight loss for obese individuals and encourage reduced-calorie diets.
THE CONTRARY VIEW:
Weight is a baseless measure for health, and weight loss a counterproductive goal.
The ironclad notion that obesity leads to disease and early death is wrong: In a 2005 report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the CDC showed that people classified as overweight live longest, with the moderately obese achieving longevity comparable to that of people at “normal” weights, and acknowledged that this finding “is consistent with other results.” In a 2011 report, the CDC found that despite increases in obesity, the average life span of U.S. residents lengthened from 70.8 years in 1970 to 77.9 years in 2007. Study after study shows that when factors such as socioeconomic status, ...
