Weight loss could mean early death sentence for older adults: Study

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It has often been burned into our brains that the lighter we are, the healthier we are, but turns out, that isn’t always the case.

A new study found that healthy older adults who lose a significant amount of weight are more at risk of premature death and “life-limiting conditions,” including cancer and cardiovascular disease.

The link between weight change and life spans was observed across all starting weights in older adults, and even those who were considered obese risk premature death if they dropped 5% or more of their body mass.

More than 16,500 people over the age of 65 in the U.S. and over the age of 70 in Australia took part in the study, published in the JAMA Network.

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Researchers used data from the Aspirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly (ASPREE) clinical trial, which recorded patients’ weights annually between 2010 and 2014.

The participants were deemed healthy with no underlying conditions or illnesses such as dementia, cardiovascular disease, life-limiting chronic illnesses or were recently hospitalized.

The study found that men who lose 5% to 10% of their body weight were at a 33% higher risk of death, and losing more than 10% increased the odds by 289%.

Women were 25% more at risk of premature death after shedding 5% to 10% body weight; more than 10% upped the odds by 114%.

“This study suggests that weight loss was associated with an increase in mortality, particularly among men, highlighting the need to monitor and investigate weight loss in older adults,” the study read.

It is unclear if the participants’ weight loss was intentional or unintentional.

The authors noted that the weight loss itself was simply an indicator, not the cause of death, and is a concern due to the possibility of illness or other health conditions.

“Although it is widely acknowledged that weight loss may precede a diagnosis of cancer, in our study, weight loss also preceded an increased mortality from [cardiovascular disease] and other causes,” the research team, led by Dr. Monira Hussain of Australia’s Monash University, wrote.

“The latter may include deaths from trauma, dementia, Parkinson disease, and other less common causes.”

The authors suggested that health professional should be more “aware of the significant association with mortality of even relatively minor weight loss.”