And it's starting to show. He says it's healthy because thin people die younger than people who may be a little overweight. A. Not necessarily. Being extremely overweight can lead to an early death. Apart from this fact, the relationship between weight and death rate across the entire weight spectrum is controversial.
Some studies say there is no association.
Others report that death rates rise with weight. Still other studies say just the opposite, that death rates rise with thinness. These differences result from the limitations in the design of the various investigations, mainly not taking into account cigarette smoking and illness-related weight loss. Nevertheless, over the last decade the idea that death rates rise with thinness has generally prevailed. This supposed relationship is a major cause of the increased standards for desirable weight reflected in the latest height and weight tables.