The harmful effects of obesity on the heart can’t be undone by exercise, and it’s not possible to be “fat but healthy,” Spanish researchers argue.

“Exercise does not seem to【C1】_____for the negative effects of excess weight,” said study author Alejandro Lucia, a professor of exercise physiology at European University in Madrid. The study findings “【C2】_____the notion that a physically active lifestyle can completely negate the 3 effects of overweight and obesity,” he said.

Lucia and his colleagues【C4】_____data from nearly 528,000 working adults in Spain. The participants’【C5】_____ age was 42 and close to 7 out of 10 were men. About 42％ of these adults were normal weight; 41％ were overweight, and 18％ were obese. Most were inactive (63.5％); 12.3％ got some but not enough exercise, and 24.2％ were【C6】________ active. About 30％ of participants had high cholesterol; 15％ had high blood pressure, and 3％ had diabetes.

No matter【C7】_____active they were, however, overweight and obese people had a higher risk of heart disease than those whose weight was【C8】__, shown in the study, published Jan. 22 in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology. Compared【C9】__active people of normal weight, active obese people were about twice as likely to have high cholesterol, four times more likely to have diabetes, and five times more likely to have high blood pressure. “One cannot be ’fat but healthy’”, Lucia【C10】_____in a journal news release.

But the researchers did not【C11】_____the importance of exercise. In all weight【C12】__, any physical activity was【C13】__with a lower risk of diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol, according to the findings. And the risk of diabetes and high blood pressure fell【C14】_____physical activity rose.

“This tells us that everyone,【C15】_____of their body weight, should be physically active to【C16】__their health,” Lucia said. “More activity is better,【C17】__walking 30 minutes per day is better than walking 15 minutes a day,” he noted. Lucia said it’s【C18】__important to fight obesity and inactivity. “Weight loss should remain a primary【C19】__for health policies together with【C20】_____active lifestyles,” he concluded.

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