Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

August 21, 2008 8:21:28 AM CDT

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Obesity Ups Odds of Beating Heart Attack

Posted Jul 10, 07 4:43 AM CDT in US,  Science & Health 

(Newser) – Chew on this: While obese people are at much higher risk for having heart attacks, they also more likely than their thinner counterparts to survive them, the AP reports. Three years after their heart attacks, as many as 10% of healthy-weight patients had died compared to 3.6% of obese patients, according to one of several recent studies that drew the same conclusion. Now scientists are puzzling out possible reasons why.

Thinner patients are more likely to be smokers, but even after controlling for tobacco use, researchers found significant differences in survival rates. Some docs speculate that the hearts of obese people are "pre-conditioned" to deal with higher levels of stress; others say lifestyle changes have a more dramatic effect on the obese.

Source Associated Press

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • Every American Will Be Fat by 2048: Study

    Aug 3, 08 2:04 PM CDT
    Every American Will Be Fat by 2048: Study The US will face a health disaster by 2030 when 86% of Americans will be overweight, with every single resident tipping the scales by 2048, according to a new study. Skyrocketing metabolic diseases will cost some $950 billion more annually, accounting for $1 in every $6 spent on health care, ABC News reports.
    More »

  • Life Grows Shorter for America's Poor

    Apr 22, 08 10:40 AM CDT
    Life Grows Shorter for America's Poor Life is getting shorter for many of America's poorest people, USA Today reports. Life expectancy has risen in most of the nation since 1960 but in some areas—including the Deep South and Appalachia—life expectancy has dropped significantly, according to a study published in The Public Library of Science. Smoking and obesity were the among the main factors, and women were most affected. More »

  • Skip Liplock, 'Go for the Heart' to Save a Life

    Apr 1, 08 5:21 AM CDT
    Skip Liplock, 'Go for the Heart' to Save a Life Reluctant bystanders can skip mouth-to-mouth resuscitation if they witness someone collapse from a heart attack, but should attempt "hands-only" CPR to save a life, the American Heart Association has recommended.  With less than a third of cardiac arrest victims receiving any form of CPR before it's too late, anything remotely resembling a chest compression could help, reports Reuters. More »

  • Mexico May Overtake US as Fattest Country

    Mar 24, 08 11:23 AM CDT
    Mexico May Overtake US as Fattest Country Mexico is the second-fattest nation after the US, and it could top the list within 10 years if waistlines continue to expand at the current rate. Nearly three-quarters of Mexican women and two-thirds of men are overweight, and diabetes is now the main cause of death. Health officials are launching anti-junk-food campaigns, but industry lobbyists aren't about to throw in the towel. More »

  • German Soldiers Too Fat: Study

    Mar 6, 08 12:19 PM CST
    German Soldiers Too Fat: Study The German army is fat. It’s also unfit, smokes too much, and eats badly, according to a recent parliamentary update, the Guardian reports. About 40% of German soldiers are overweight—8.5% seriously so—and 70% smoke. “This has much to do with poor equipment and lack of training,” the report concluded, adding that soldiers spent too much time on bureaucratic tasks. More »

Overweight workers cost their bosses more in injury claims than their lean colleagues, suggests a study that found the heaviest employees had twice the rate of workers' compensation claims as their fit...   (Associated Press)
Jeanne Toombs poses with one of her two dogs outside her house in Concord, Mass., Thursday, May 17, 2007. Toombs, a board member of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, says overweight...   (Associated Press)
Jeanne Toombs leaves her house in Concord, Mass., Thursday, May 17, 2007. Toombs, a board member of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, says overweight people routinely are discriminated...   (Associated Press)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Our editors also recommend:

Threads (1 of 2)

Tags

health  • obesity  • heart disease  • smoking  • heart attack  • obesity epidemic  • heart failure


Loading...

Premium Articles from HighBeam

Find more articles like this

Today's Most Popular


Other Home Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Newser gives you more news in less time. We search for the best and most important stories all over the web, read them for you, and deliver concise and sharp summaries—along with links to the full text. Newser provides a way to stay on top of an ever-expanding horizon of news and opinion—politics, sports, business, trends, technology, personalities, crimes, and controversies. Newser keeps you not just better informed, but, with our signature graphic interface and smart condensed format, more enjoyably informed.

Learn more »