The Longevity Dialogues

Part 1: Introduction

In this mini-series, I would like to put the issue of weight into perspective. Our society is fixated on being thin. In the beginning of Thomas Wolfe's book The Bonfire of the Vanities, there is a wonderful description of the emaciated very wealthy women of New York's Upper East Side and their preoccupation with their petite waistlines. Fashion magazines, until very recently, have exclusively featured anorexic models. Gain a few pounds and your Hollywood career as an actor may be in jeopardy. Thin is in and fat is definitely out. Dieting is a multibillion dollar industry fueled by the obsession with male as well as female waistlines.

Being thin was not always viewed as being desirable. Rueben and Renoir chose as models women who were far from thin. Portraits of successful men like J.P. Morgan showed a big waistline representing his good fortune and prosperity. For most of our recorded history, women as thin as fashion models were considered sickly and would not fetch much of a dowry. So what is a healthy weight?

I am not going to advocate that we forget our waistline and look like beach balls. There is plenty of evidence that being overweight puts you at greater risk for many serious health problems such as high blood pressure (hypertension), heart disease, diabetes and gall

bladder disease. In fact, losing weight is part of the initial treatment for some of these conditions.

However, having a few extra pounds later in life is not as risky and may actually protect you. So, if you are not obese and you are past age 50, and have a few extra pounds, you should weigh your options carefully before starting to diet. This mini-series will review the effect of aging on your body weight as well as the criteria for being overweight that can help you make your own personal decision on the need for weight reduction.

What happens to your body as you age?

It's not fair! As you get older, you consume fewer calories yet you gain more weight. What is responsible for this unhappy paradox? With aging, your muscle mass decreases and your activity levels go down and thus your energy requirements are less. In addition, many of your daily activities change: you don't run to catch that bus anymore, you now play half court basketball instead of full court, and you may have exchanged the salsa for the tango.

With aging, it's also more difficult to take off those additional pounds around your waist or hips. Go have a big Thanksgiving dinner at age 25 and the odds are good that you can take off the extra inch from your waistline quickly and easily. But at 50, it takes real work to get that zipper closed again.

Lessened energy needs with aging are not matched by a parallel decline in food consumption and, as a result, your body fat increases. If you saw an MRI of how the average thigh changes with aging, you would be shocked. The size of your thigh bone, the femur, doesn't change much. In the young thigh, the muscles comprise most of the cross-section of the thigh. But, if you don't stay in shape, by the time you reach old age, you will have a hard time finding the muscle mass that has shrunken to a small fraction of its young size.

How can you respond to this viscous cycle of decreased activity, decreasing lean body mass and increased fat? You need to get more active and start pumping iron now! Your muscle mass will increase, and your appetite will improve, but the extra pounds will go to the right places. You will also get a good night's sleep, feel better about yourself, and decrease your risk for a dozen or more diseases. You will live longer and healthier being fit with a few extra pounds around your waistline than being unfit and thin.

Information provided in this article is for informational purposes and is not meant to substitute for the advice furnished by your own physician or other medical professional. This content should not be utilized for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing any medication. Before taking any health product, you should read carefully all product packaging. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, promptly contact your health care provider. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

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