It's well known that obese adults have a greater risk of health problems such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, but new research published in the American Journal of Public Health shows that they are at greater risk of physical disability, too.

Researchers from Purdue University in Indiana studied whether a person's body mass index (BMI) affected whether he or she developed a disability in adulthood. The study researchers tracked the height, weight and health of nearly 7,000 adults over a 10- to 20-year period. In this study, disability was defined as a restriction or inability to do simple things such as walk a quarter of a mile or do light chores.

If a person was obese at the start of the study or became obese during the study period, he or she had a greater risk of having upper-body or lower-body disability. If a person was obese at the start of the study but lost enough weight to be considered at a normal weight, the higher risk of disability persisted even after losing weight.

The results of this study indicate that the health effects of obesity are not entirely reversible. However, for an obese person, weight loss relieves some of the strain placed upon the body's organs and musculoskeletal system and can greatly improve health.

Related information: Weight loss information | Benefits of weight loss

Sources:  Ferraro KF, Su YP, Gretebeck RJ, Black DR, Badylak SF. Body mass index and disability in adulthood: a 20-year panel study. American Journal of Public Health 2002 May;92(5):834-40.