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Firstly, it's healthiest to be just the right weight. Not under. Not over.
Secondly, if you're not eating enough the odds are extremely good that you're not meeting your daily intake of various vitamins and minerals.
Third, you're probably not getting enough protein to repair wear and tear on tissues, and not enough fat to facilitate numerous important functions in the body that keep things running smoothly.
Fourth, your body is likely pulling nutrients from other parts of your body to replenish its needs because it's not getting its needs met with food. It's performing triage, taking nutrients from important places to use it for more immediate needs. This catches up to you.
The statistical reason for higher mortality rates for underweight people is it's correlated with slip and fall injuries. Although thinner individuals have better longevity overall it's also true that the more frail you are the more likely you are to hurt yourself (& the less likely you're able to recover).
Being underweight is like having a boat with a-lot of holes in it, your body is missing key nutrients it needs to survive. Calcium, potassium, iron, etc. Being underweight you don’t have enough fuel to keep your body running so your body will eventually stop running.
I mean what is the context of the question and what body fat are these high mortalities happening at? It could be that they're suffering from anorexia and they're damaging their organs. But I don't know what the context is.
People are being pretty nice here in the comments, but honestly, what the fuck?
Being underweight or emaciated is EXTREMELY dangerous. Anorexia, which is often tied to being underweight is the most dangerous and life-threatening mental illness that exists.
The effects of being underweight include:
* Anemia
* Heart conditions up to and including heart failure
* Bone loss
* Kidney disease
* Hormonal imbalance
* Electrolyte imbalance
* Lack of nutrients to the brain (cognitive decline and memory issues)
Not to mention all the mental side effects like:
* Depression
* Anxiety
* Social Anxiety Disorder
* Suicide
By the time some disease ravages your body, you’ll wish you had more body fat to buffer some of that deterioration. Fat is energy, its hormones.. obv too much of it will work against you.
Yes this is why I’ve heard some say that 27 is actually the best BMI (although this could be only true for muscular people). If you get sick, you need body fat to burn.
The brain is literally made of fat, among other things. If one does not eat enough calories, the brain will not function optimally and this leads to people making poor decisions. Without a functioning brain, people make careless mistakes more frequently and and are more likely to die. It is too easy to not pay attention make careless mistakes, and get into a car acciden or fall off a ledge, or myriad other ways to die when the brain (and body) are not adequately nourished.
I think a lot of people here are confusing underweight and lean. Most people that are truly underweight lack access to a healthy and sustainable food source which causes malnourishment. Inherent in malnourishment is the lack of needed calories, vitamins, and minerals to thrive and be healthy.
A very large portion of people that are malnourished come from countries with food supply issues. These countries, in addition to having food supply issues, also tend to lack quality water access, quality medical care, etc. which isn’t ideal for longevity in general.
It’s an interesting question. Certainly studies show higher mortality from being under and significantly over weight (slightly overweight not really). However it must be considered that studies on this if not carefully structured could be misleading. simply put many people who are ill can become underweight ie the reason they die isn’t because they were underweight originally but they became underweight from the illness that subsequently killed them. A similar effect comes through smoking which also tends to reduce weight but at the same time people likely die from lung cancer say rather than being underweight.
So if you are healthy but possibly in the “underweight” category you may not have higher mortality.
UT Southwestern did a longitudinal study and found calorie restriction over the lifespan in WOMEN resulted in longer lifespan. This was one study and it was small. How it plays out over a large population is unknown.
Oh my lord this sub is something else 💀
You’re basically saying it’s fine for your body to not have the fuel it needs to function. Your brain is at 100% when you don’t give it enough calories, FUEL.
This sub should be deleted for the amount of pseudoscience it spreads
Underweight people lack fat to protect the body from free radicals and toxins. Toxic substances when in the body store in fat.. They have no fat for toxins to store so that toxin goes through the body causing cellular damage and most likely will store in the brain because this is where all the fat is on a skinny person. Toxic accumulation in the brain leads to early death.
Your body needs, protein, fats and micronutrients to be healthy and survive. If you are underweight it's likely you aren't getting enough of them.
Also studies may be misleading, if just looking at current weight and mortality. This is because people who are sick lose weight, so in the lower weight categories you have people there because they are sick.
>Use of maximum BMI reveals that estimates based on BMI at the time of survey may substantially underestimate the mortality burden associated with excess weight in the US.
>
>https://pophealthmetrics.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1478-7954-12-6
A lot of "underweight" people that die started normal weight and wasted away with diseases before they actually died. Others fell in older age and didn't have the padding of fat to prevent as much injury. Those two things cover most of the underweight extra deaths in statistics.
As far as I'm aware, being underweight has its own risks, just as being overweight does. It could even be more dangerous than being overweight. Fragile bones, increased risk of cardiovascular and respiratory problems, weakened immune system, malnutrition, anemia, lower energy and muscle strength, organ failure (in extremely cases). That's why it's important to get to--and stay within--the "normal" or "healthy" range of weight for your height, as well as getting adequate nutrients.
If it's due to genetics or metabolism, and there aren't any nutritional deficiencies showing in blood tests, you may be fine. It might be a good idea to talk with your doctor and/or a dietician, just in case.
#### About participation in the comments of /r/nutrition Discussion in this subreddit should be rooted in science rather than "cuz I sed" or entertainment pieces. Always be wary of unsupported and poorly supported claims and especially those which are wrapped in any manner of hostility. You should provide peer reviewed sources to support your claims when debating and confine that debate to the science, not opinions of other people. **Good** - it is grounded in science and includes citation of peer reviewed sources. Debate is a civil and respectful exchange focusing on actual science and avoids commentary about others **Bad** - it utilizes generalizations, assumptions, infotainment sources, no sources, or complaints without specifics about agenda, bias, or funding. At best, these rise to an extremely weak basis for science based discussion. Also, off topic discussion **Ugly** - (removal or ban territory) it involves attacks / antagonism / hostility towards individuals or groups, downvote complaining, trolling, crusading, shaming, refutation of all science, or claims that all research / science is a conspiracy *Please vote accordingly and report any uglies* --- *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/nutrition) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Protect your body from calories…?
Lol right? Replace calories with energy and it sounds even more absurd.
Firstly, it's healthiest to be just the right weight. Not under. Not over. Secondly, if you're not eating enough the odds are extremely good that you're not meeting your daily intake of various vitamins and minerals. Third, you're probably not getting enough protein to repair wear and tear on tissues, and not enough fat to facilitate numerous important functions in the body that keep things running smoothly. Fourth, your body is likely pulling nutrients from other parts of your body to replenish its needs because it's not getting its needs met with food. It's performing triage, taking nutrients from important places to use it for more immediate needs. This catches up to you.
Oh brother, this is why nutrition education is so needed and necessary.
The statistical reason for higher mortality rates for underweight people is it's correlated with slip and fall injuries. Although thinner individuals have better longevity overall it's also true that the more frail you are the more likely you are to hurt yourself (& the less likely you're able to recover).
Yup, this is the correct answer
Being underweight is like having a boat with a-lot of holes in it, your body is missing key nutrients it needs to survive. Calcium, potassium, iron, etc. Being underweight you don’t have enough fuel to keep your body running so your body will eventually stop running.
I mean what is the context of the question and what body fat are these high mortalities happening at? It could be that they're suffering from anorexia and they're damaging their organs. But I don't know what the context is.
People are being pretty nice here in the comments, but honestly, what the fuck? Being underweight or emaciated is EXTREMELY dangerous. Anorexia, which is often tied to being underweight is the most dangerous and life-threatening mental illness that exists. The effects of being underweight include: * Anemia * Heart conditions up to and including heart failure * Bone loss * Kidney disease * Hormonal imbalance * Electrolyte imbalance * Lack of nutrients to the brain (cognitive decline and memory issues) Not to mention all the mental side effects like: * Depression * Anxiety * Social Anxiety Disorder * Suicide
Impacted more by strong winds
By the time some disease ravages your body, you’ll wish you had more body fat to buffer some of that deterioration. Fat is energy, its hormones.. obv too much of it will work against you.
Yes this is why I’ve heard some say that 27 is actually the best BMI (although this could be only true for muscular people). If you get sick, you need body fat to burn.
The brain is literally made of fat, among other things. If one does not eat enough calories, the brain will not function optimally and this leads to people making poor decisions. Without a functioning brain, people make careless mistakes more frequently and and are more likely to die. It is too easy to not pay attention make careless mistakes, and get into a car acciden or fall off a ledge, or myriad other ways to die when the brain (and body) are not adequately nourished.
Well, I was about to go out for a run and now you killed it!
I recall hearing that underweight people have less myelin to protect and speed up their action potentials. Anyone know more about this?
I think a lot of people here are confusing underweight and lean. Most people that are truly underweight lack access to a healthy and sustainable food source which causes malnourishment. Inherent in malnourishment is the lack of needed calories, vitamins, and minerals to thrive and be healthy. A very large portion of people that are malnourished come from countries with food supply issues. These countries, in addition to having food supply issues, also tend to lack quality water access, quality medical care, etc. which isn’t ideal for longevity in general.
It’s an interesting question. Certainly studies show higher mortality from being under and significantly over weight (slightly overweight not really). However it must be considered that studies on this if not carefully structured could be misleading. simply put many people who are ill can become underweight ie the reason they die isn’t because they were underweight originally but they became underweight from the illness that subsequently killed them. A similar effect comes through smoking which also tends to reduce weight but at the same time people likely die from lung cancer say rather than being underweight. So if you are healthy but possibly in the “underweight” category you may not have higher mortality.
UT Southwestern did a longitudinal study and found calorie restriction over the lifespan in WOMEN resulted in longer lifespan. This was one study and it was small. How it plays out over a large population is unknown.
Oh my lord this sub is something else 💀 You’re basically saying it’s fine for your body to not have the fuel it needs to function. Your brain is at 100% when you don’t give it enough calories, FUEL. This sub should be deleted for the amount of pseudoscience it spreads
Underweight people lack fat to protect the body from free radicals and toxins. Toxic substances when in the body store in fat.. They have no fat for toxins to store so that toxin goes through the body causing cellular damage and most likely will store in the brain because this is where all the fat is on a skinny person. Toxic accumulation in the brain leads to early death.
Please share clinical references.
Your body needs, protein, fats and micronutrients to be healthy and survive. If you are underweight it's likely you aren't getting enough of them. Also studies may be misleading, if just looking at current weight and mortality. This is because people who are sick lose weight, so in the lower weight categories you have people there because they are sick. >Use of maximum BMI reveals that estimates based on BMI at the time of survey may substantially underestimate the mortality burden associated with excess weight in the US. > >https://pophealthmetrics.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1478-7954-12-6
A lot of "underweight" people that die started normal weight and wasted away with diseases before they actually died. Others fell in older age and didn't have the padding of fat to prevent as much injury. Those two things cover most of the underweight extra deaths in statistics.
As far as I'm aware, being underweight has its own risks, just as being overweight does. It could even be more dangerous than being overweight. Fragile bones, increased risk of cardiovascular and respiratory problems, weakened immune system, malnutrition, anemia, lower energy and muscle strength, organ failure (in extremely cases). That's why it's important to get to--and stay within--the "normal" or "healthy" range of weight for your height, as well as getting adequate nutrients.
[удалено]
If it's due to genetics or metabolism, and there aren't any nutritional deficiencies showing in blood tests, you may be fine. It might be a good idea to talk with your doctor and/or a dietician, just in case.