Diet Vs. Exercise

Being overweight is never good for your health, but a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association (J.A.M.A.) suggests that sometimes it's better to be fit than thin. As part of the Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation, researchers found that inactive women, no matter how thin or fat, were much more likely to have heart attacks and other cardiac problems than women who exercised. But don't discount the impact of slimming down. In another study in J.A.M.A., research from the ongoing Women's Health Study found that overweight and obese women — regardless of how regularly they exercised — were up to nine times as likely to develop diabetes as women of normal weight. Bottom line: there's no easy way around it. Stay trim and active.