A study of 86,000 people finds being underweight carries a higher death risk than being overweight, raising questions about long-held ideals of health and body size.
A new study presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) has found that being underweight may pose a greater mortality risk than being overweight, challenging long-standing assumptions about body size and health.
Researchers tracked nearly 86,000 people, mostly women with an average age in their mid-60s, for five years, comparing body mass index (BMI) with mortality rates. The findings revealed that underweight participants died significantly faster than their overweight counterparts.
The study identified the “upper-normal” BMI range of 22.5–25 as the safest for survival. By contrast, individuals in the “lower-normal” (18.5–20) and “middle-normal” (20–22.5) ranges were more likely to die, while those with a BMI below 18.5 faced nearly three times the risk.
Surprisingly, being overweight (BMI 25–30) or moderately obese (30–35) did not increase mortality compared to the upper-normal group, a phenomenon researchers linked to the “fat but fit” concept. However, severe obesity (BMI above 40) doubled the risk of death.
The study also stressed that body shape matters. Visceral fat around the abdomen is far more dangerous metabolically than modest extra weight elsewhere.
While BMI remains a crude measurement that ignores muscle mass and other health indicators, the research contributes to a growing body of evidence urging a reevaluation of what constitutes a “healthy body.”