Here's a little experimental work to remind us all that, whatever the apologists for an abundance of body fat might like to be the case, it's just not good for health and longevity over the long term:

Aging is associated with increases in fat mass (FM) and decreases in fat-free mass (FFM) that may affect physical capacity. However, it is not clear whether high FM or low FFM contribute more to a reduction in physical capacity.

...

our results showed that percentage of FM was significantly associated with physical capacity (p <.01), whereas no such association was observed with FFM. Other variables such as physical activity level, number of self-reported diseases, and age were associated with physical capacity (all p <.01).

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FM was significantly and inversely correlated with physical capacity, whereas FFM was not associated when controlled for other potential confounding variables.

There's a more than reasonable weight of science behind the bad things that excess fat cells do to your metabolism - such as act as a source of chronic inflammation, continually generating damage at the cellular and biochemical level that your body cannot repair. That's not even to talk about what "reduction in physical capacity" and the resultant lack of exercise does for your prospects:

Exercise reduce the rate at which some of the cellular and biomolecular damage of aging accumulates, either by slowing the ongoing addition of new damage, or by modifying the processes of repair. In a future of rapidly advancing biotechnology, even a single additional year of time to wait for new therapies is a big deal.

Letting years of future health slide away through simple negligence of the basics is a choice; many people make it. It just doesn't seem the smartest way forward.

Posted by Reason at January 2, 2008 8:28 PM | TrackBack (0)