There’s a good chance your New Year’s resolution to exercise more or eat healthier will also protect you from COVID-19.
Several studies have found that overweight people are at more risk of serious illness from the virus. The reason for this,
according to one researcher
, is that the virus infects fat cells directly, which affects neighboring tissues and prompts a defensive response from the body that is sometimes more harmful than the virus itself.
Even among young people, who are generally at less risk of becoming seriously ill from COVID-19 just by virtue of their age, are more likely to end up in the hospital if they are overweight. One study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that
61% of the patients
between the ages of 12 and 17 who were hospitalized due to COVID-19 last year had obesity.
One would think this risk would be reflected in public health officials’ messaging. Instead, most experts have tip-toed around the subject, acknowledging that obesity does put people at more risk but stopping short of encouraging them to do something about it. Why tell people to lose weight and risk being called “fatphobic” when you could just force them to wear masks and be applauded for it?
The truth is simple: Healthier people are healthier people. Eating well, exercising frequently, and generally taking care of your body are some of the best preventive measures out there. In fact, they’re probably more effective at protecting you from illness than the cloth masks that experts are now admitting don’t work.
Ultimately, however, the decision to live a healthy lifestyle is yours to make — with good reason. Last I checked, public health officials aren’t supporting government mandates to force people to lose weight. Although, if pandemic policies were really about protecting people from COVID-19, perhaps they would.
