A weight loss of 5-13 percent from changes in lifestyle is associated with a 0-18 percent reduction in total cholesterol; 2-44 percent reduction in triglycerides; 3-22 percent reduction in LDL-cholesterol; and a 7-27 percent increase in HDL-cholesterol according to the U.S. NIH’s Obesity Guidelines (p. 21). Changes are similar for those on diet-alone, exercise-alone, or diet-plus-exercise. (p. 34)

The prevalence of high total cholesterol (greater than 240 mg/dL) increases with BMI above 25, although at each BMI level, the prevalence is greater in women than in men according to the U.S. NIH’s Obesity Guidelines (p. 14).

Women eating portion-controlled diets lost more weight than women on a diet that was not portion-controlled even though both were supposed to eat the same number of calories according to a new study. Women on the portion-controlled diet lost 12.3 pounds in two months compared to 7.9 pounds for women following a non-portion-controlled diet.

Obesity is undiagnosed in 22.9 percent of U.S. adults according to a new study.

Obesity increases the risk of cardioascular disease. One study found that being 20-29 percent over ideal weight increases the risk of dying from coronary heart disease by 32 percent in men and 39 percent in women according to one study. A simple copper supplement may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease according to an excellent review paper by Leslie Klevay, M.D. from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Extreme obesity, that is having a body mass index of 40 or more, increases the risk of high cholesterol levels 1.9-fold as self-reported by people who were surveyed according to a paper from researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In men, elevated cholesterol levels of greater than 240 mg/dL occur in

• 13 percent of men with a body mass index (BMI) of less than 25 (normal weight),
• 19 percent of men with a body mass index (BMI) of 25-27, and
• 22 percent of men with a BMI of 27-30.

In women, hypertension is present in

• 13 percent of women with a BMI of less than 25,
• 31 percent of women with a BMI of 25-27, and
• 30 percent of women with a BMI of 27-30.

Since the risk of diseases associated with obesity are associated with belly fat, and not fat on the hips and thighs, taking a waist measurement is a better indication of risk than is body mass index (BMI) according to a new paper from Germany.

Cholesterol levels are associated with bodyweight according to a recent review. Bodyweight explains 80 percent of the differences in cholesterol levels. For every 22 pounds of weight loss total cholesterol levels will drop by approximately 9 mg/dL.

Patients eating a low-carbohydrate group lost nearly twice as much weight as those in the low-fat group. Those in the low-carb group lost an average of 26.4 pounds compared to 14.3 pounds for those in the low-fat group.

“Clinicians are likely to encounter morbidity more frequently among their patients with elevated BMI, even those patients in the overweight category [with a body mass index greater than 25],” concludes a recent study by researchers from Tufts University, Harvard School of Public Health, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.