Weight Loss Improves Lung Function

Lose weight, breathe more easily.

For a 20-year study, researchers tracked 3,673 adults who were 20 to 44 years old at the start. The participants had their body weight and lung function measured at the beginning, middle, and end of the study.

Nearly two-thirds gained weight, and that was accompanied by worsening lung function, no matter how much they weighed at the start, perhaps due to increased inflammation as the pounds increased. In contrast, participants who had been obese as young adults saw their lung health improve significantly if they lost more than a half pound per year.

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Source: Thorax, Feb. 25, 2020