[E. Pluribus Unum]

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

[RedBeaconNY]

Common sense says that obesity speeds up the death process.

[My2Cents]

Thank God for science.

[HereInTheHeartland]

Our bodies were not designed to be sedentary, over fat, and soft.

[thompsonsjkc]

This crap is getting out of hand. First, obesity is the new crisis, but now it's a crisis if you intentionally lose weight. Apparently, unintentionally losing weight is not a problem.

[what's up]

I just lost ten pounds.

I hope I don't die in 18 months.

[thoughtomator]

This just in: Life carries a 100% risk of death.

[SandyB]

I have seen this many times. I think cancer hides in fat/adipose tissue, and when it is dissolved, the cancer is released.

[GovernmentShrinker]

Further evidence that not getting fat in the first place is urgently important.

While I think it's way premature to be telling fat people not to lose weight, it's well-established that becoming fat causes physiological changes which cannot be completely reversed by losing the weight. A slightly overweight child should be treated as a health emergency, instead of the current approach of "hoping he'll outgrow it" and "encouraging the child to make healthier food choices". The effective approach is to physically prevent the child from accessing any food which s/he shouldn't be eating. Worry about changing the child's decision-making and impulse-control skills much later, when s/he's old enough to grasp the importance, and isn't already doomed to a life of poor health.

[Millee]

study of 2,957 twins in Finland found that those who were overweight who lost weight on purpose were about 86 percent more likely to die for any reason over the next 18 years

Lightning strikes? Shark attacks? Silly statement!

[Modok]

I thought death and sudden severe weight loss went together.

[kms61]

Could it be that those who lost weight on purpose had been told to by a doctor because they ALREADY had risk factors?

[Kiss Me Hardy]

That's it, then. Pass the Moon Pies

[mass55th]

I'm wondering if the people who died lost their weight by not eating foods our bodies require to survive. For example, when pets get sick and stop eating all together, they stand the chance of developing liver problems because the fat they have stored in their body breaks apart and ends up in the liver thus causing liver malfunction. Perhaps this is similar to what happens when some overweight people try extreme methods of dieting, like just eating grapefruit or drinking liquids to lose weight.

[ken21]

that study was done in iraq with people who were losing their heads.

that's a severe weight loss, and always leads to death.

[JoeGar]

There may be something to this. I lost 58 pounds in five months and almost died when my immune system failed and vasculitis attacked my organs.