The Monmouth inquirer. [volume] (Freehold, N.J.) 1865-1933, 1923-06-28
FAT NOT AN ASSET
insurance Figures Concerning
Weight and Mortality.
Accumulation Of Surplus Flesh Rather
puts one In the UndsalrabIs Class,
According to Experts

The average build in man is not the
best as regards longevity according to
n statistical report. Overweight In
youth and underweight In middle and
later life viii cheat 'the grim reaper
out of some years Overweight Is a
serious Impairment among insured
lives. for these persons more often
succumb at an earlier age to the dis
eases of the heart or kidneys, to pneu-
monia and to disorders which reflect
the WORKOUT machinery Of the body.
Overweight In younger years is an adj
vantage, for such persons have uni
fornly lower death rate from tuber-
culosis. 1t Is after the age OF thirty
Ave that overweight, even in relatively
small amounts, begins to be danger
GUS. The seriousness increases with
advancing age and with the amount
OF overweight, according to the In
surance authorities.
Among short men, continues the
report, shat is, those below five feet
seven inches In height, at the age pc
Rod 40 to A years, an excess Of 20 per
cent in weight involves an added NOR
tally Of so per cent above the normal.
Al 40 per cent Increase In weight in
such individuals involves an increased
mortality of nearly 80 per cent. Among
tall men, that is, those over five feet
ten inches In height, the adverse stu
alton is even more marked. For, among
them, at ages 40 to "A, 90 per cent
excess in weight carries 40 per cent
increase in mortality, and 40 per
cent excess in weight doubles the NOR
tally.
"On the other hand. underweight,
which is common enough, presents a
different picture In general, under
weight is an advantage, provided, Of
course, the proportion is not too great.
1t is a serious impairment in early
adult life, especially among taller men.
Those who are over five feet ten
inches, and who are 20 per cent below
the average weight for their height,
show an increased mortality of 80 per
cent. Those having so per cent un-
derweight have so per cent excess ef
mortality at these early ages. But,
from age 40 onward, there are appar-
emily no such penalties for under
weight and this condition, In fact, be-
comes a distinct advantage; for these
are the people who have the best NOR
tally rates.
1.-THE important lesson taught by
these propositions Is that there is an
optimum build with reference to NOR
tally. The average build Is not the
best. Those who weigh between 10
and 20 per cent below the average
show the optimum condition of longevi-
ty at the most of the ages after early
adult life. These few facts which
have been derived from analysis of
the insurance records must be supple
mented by intensive physiological re-
search. A promising field of inyesti-
CATION is opened up for the physiolo-
gist to determine why the body me-
chanism functions better in those who
set persons. Common observation con-
firms these statistical findings. The
large majority of people we see
around who have reached a ripe old
age are of slight build.
"a promising field for investigation
is the suggestion that among over
weights having large chest capacity
the conditions Of mortality are more
favorable than among those not so
protected. 1t may be well that over
weights who have large trunks are
probably the best overweights and
must be distinguished from those Of
small chest capacity and corresponds
ingly large abdominal girth. The sig
nificance of these differences is for the
future to determine"