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EARTHtimes: Healthwrap: 'Obesity paradox' puzzles
Patients with a higher body mass index hospitalized with acute heart failure had a lower mortality rate than those who were leaner -- it's something called the obesity paradox.

When something screws with your world-view, kiddies, simply label it a paradox. That will make you feel better.

For every 5-unit increase in body mass, the odds of risk-adjusted mortality fell 10 percent, according to Dr. Gregg C. Fonarow of the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California at Los Angeles.

The study found that by weight category, in-hospital mortality rate was 6.3 percent for underweight, 4.6 percent for healthy weight, 3.4 percent for overweight and 2.4 percent for obese patients, according to the study published in the American Heart Journal.

The study suggests that overweight and obese patients may have a greater metabolic reserve to call upon during an acute heart failure episode, which may lessen in-hospital mortality risk, says Fonarow. Obesity is a known risk factor for developing heart disease and heart failure, and every effort should be made to avoid it, but once heart failure has manifested, this paradox seems to occur, says Fonarow.