Measuring Tapes and Couch Potatoes

Weight control and exercise are the cornerstones of a healthy lifestyle – but which is the most important? A report from Harvard tries to help clear this up. Both obesity and inactivity are independently responsible for an increased risk of heart attacks, and improving either one of these will lower the risk. But normal weight women who are couch potatoes have a lower risk of heart attack than obese women who work out regularly. It looks as if the measuring tape trumps the treadmill. Your waist should be 35 inches or less if you’re a woman, 40 inches or less if you’re a man . . .