Your health: Sunbathers live longer

Study: Sunbathers live longer

Maybe stepping outside to soak up some sun isn't such a bad idea.

A new study compared the life spans of people with varying amounts of sun exposure. They found that among nearly 30,000 women in Sweden, who were each monitored for about 20 years, those who spent more time in the sun actually lived longer and had less heart disease and fewer non-cancer deaths than those who reported less sun exposure, Harvard Medical Publications reports.

But there are some important caveats about this research. Deaths due to cancer were more common among those who spent more time in the sun. Also, the impact of sun exposure on longevity was relatively small. Even those with the greatest sun exposure only benefited from an extra seven months to two years of life.

In addition, this study detected an association between sun exposure and a lower frequency of certain causes of death; however, that's not the same as proving that sun exposure was the cause of longer life.

The reason why more sun exposure might prolong life or prevent heart disease deaths could not be determined by this study. Because the sun's UV light triggers chemical reactions in the skin that lead to the production of vitamin D, it's possible that vitamin D is responsible for the health benefits of sun exposure.

Women are obese more than men

New studies published in the journal JAMA last week present an alarming picture of the shifting demographics of the country's obesity problem, The Washington Post reports.

For nearly three decades, American men and women have been mostly growing fatter together. But in recent years, for reasons researchers still don't understand, women have broken away with more of them becoming fatter faster.

According to an analysis of the latest government statistics, a staggering 40 percent of women now meet the criteria for being obese. That means that their body mass index, or BMI, is 30 or higher. So, a 5-foot-9-inch woman would weigh more than 203 pounds.

A second study in the same journal found a small increase in teenagers with obesity.

Among the major findings of the study:

• For men, current smokers were more likely to be obese. This same association was not seen in women.

• Women with an education beyond high school were significantly less likely to be obese.

• For all U.S. children ages 2 to 19, the prevalence of obesity in 2011-2014 was 17 percent.

• Over the past 25 years, there has been a positive shift in the very youngest Americans, with the obesity prevalence decreasing among those ages 2 to 5 and leveling off in children ages 6 to 10.

• Unfortunately, it has increased among adolescents ages 12 to 19.