Every extra two pounds cuts down your life by two months

Every extra two pounds an overweight person carries cuts their life expectancy by two months, new research reveals.

Holding excess weight may shorten a person’s life by raising their risk of coronary artery disease, according to the researchers.

Smoking has the greatest impact on shortening people’s lives, with a packet of cigarettes a day knocking off seven years, the research adds.

The study also revealed every additional year an individual spends in further education extends their lifespan by around 12 months by making them more aware of the dangers of smoking.

Study author Dr Peter Joshi from the University of Edinburgh, said: ‘Our study has estimated the causal effect of lifestyle choices. We found that, on average, smoking a pack a day reduces lifespan by seven years, whilst losing one kilogram of weight will increase your lifespan by two months.’

Every extra two pounds an overweight person carries cuts their life expectancy by two months

LOSING WEIGHT COULD BE AS SIMPLE AS SKIPPING BREAKFAST: FASTING UNTIL LUNCH CUTS MORE THAN 300 CALORIES

Losing weight could be as simple as skipping breakfast, research suggested earlier this month.

Fasting until lunch causes people to eat around 353 fewer calories a day, a study found.

Study author Dr Keith Tolfrey said: ‘There is a common belief that breakfast is the “most important meal of the day”.

‘However, around one third of children and adolescents in many countries skip breakfast regularly.’

The findings from the Universities of Loughborough and Bedfordshire support a growing body of evidence that restricting calories, via fasting, boosts weight loss by reducing people’s calorie intake and regulating hormones involved in fat storage.

How the research was carried out

The researchers analysed 25 studies from Europe, Australia and North America with a total of 606,059 people.

The study’s participants’ genetic and lifespan information was investigated.

Excess weight and smoking shorten people’s lifespan

Results reveal people who are overweight reduce their life expectancy by two months for every additional 2lbs they carry.

Carrying excess weight may shorten a person’s life by raising their risk of coronary artery disease.

The study also found every extra year a person spends in further education extends their life expectancy by approximately 12 months.

This is thought to be due to educated people being more aware of the dangers of smoking, which has the greatest impact on lessening lifespan.

People who get through a packet of cigarettes a day knock on average seven years off their life expectancy.

In terms of genetics, a gene that influences blood cholesterol levels can reduce a person’s lifespan by eight months, while a gene associated with the immune system can extend someone’s life by around half a year.

Dr Joshi said: ‘Our study has estimated the causal effect of lifestyle choices. We found that, on average, smoking a pack a day reduces lifespan by seven years, whilst losing one kilogram of weight will increase your lifespan by two months.’

The findings were published in the journal Nature Communications.

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