Cardiopulmonary status is better predictive for preventing cardiovascular disease and risk of death than body mass index (BMI). This has been deduced by meta-analysis in an article in the British Journal of Sport Medicine. Specifically, it has been observed that, in the same cardiorespiratory condition, the risks are the same regardless of the BMI in which they are. Thus, to prevent or treat diseases associated with obesity, they propose to modify the focus and take into account the improvement of cardiopulmonary health, instead of putting all the effort on losing weight through diet.
To reach these conclusions, the researchers have reviewed 20 studies with almost 400,000 observations. Researchers have warned that the majority of participants were from Caucasus and Western countries. However, the percentage of women has been higher than that of the studies carried out so far (33 per cent) and remains the most comprehensive review undertaken so far.
Thus, the results have been considered very useful for the review of strategies against diseases associated with obesity. In fact, the prevalence of obesity is increasing, as well as the economic impact associated with obesity. Likewise, the thinning strategy fails with many individuals. The research considers that the cardiopulmonary situation is a better prognosis than the BMI, both for suffering cardiovascular diseases and for dying from any cause. Therefore, it is suggested that it would be advisable to investigate the effect of the improvement of the cardiopulmonary situation on the effects associated with obesity, while performing the diet, and only in comparison to the diet.