My BMI (Body mass index) hovers around 28 to 29.9, depending on the day and perhaps the optimism of my calculator. Officially, that puts me in the “overweight” category — not quite “Fatboy 1.” At age 81, however, a little pudge may be less a failure of discipline and more a strategic reserve.
Turns out, carrying some extra weight in old age can come with advantages. During illness, body reserves may help one recover. A bit of padding can sometimes reduce frailty, and maintaining weight is often preferable to becoming too thin and losing muscle. There may even be mobility and joint benefits for some people, depending on overall health and strength. Above all, several studies suggest that for older adults, being modestly overweight is often associated with lower mortality risk than being underweight — or even aggressively lean.
So perhaps what looks like “extra cushioning” is, in old age, exactly that: cushioning. Definitely cushions.
