View All Editions

Daily Edition • Wednesday, May 20

Why Weight Gain Before 30 Hits Harder

Close-up of hands holding a sandwich with melted cheese, surrounded by fries and onion rings on a table with drinks.

Ahmet Kurt/Unsplash

Heavy Stuff: We know that being overweight comes with increased risk for things like cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. But is there a specific time of life when weight gain is most harmful? New research suggests there is.

The Study: Researchers from Lund University in Sweden collected data from 1963 to 2015 for more than 620,000 adults. Participants had their weight assessed multiple times between ages 17 and 60. The study found that a steep weight-gain trajectory, early-adulthood obesity onset, and higher weight gain between ages 17 and 29 were associated with higher mortality risk. People who developed obesity between ages 17 and 29 had about a 70% higher risk of death during the follow-up period compared with those who had not developed obesity by age 60.

The Takeaway: Obesity before age 30 had the strongest link to premature death, especially in men, with a substantially higher risk of liver, pancreatic, kidney, colon, and other cancers. In women, the cancer risk remained about the same regardless of when they gained weight. But the risks were not limited just to obesity. Gaining 6.5 kg (about 14 pounds) between 17 and 30 was associated with about 17% higher risk of premature death. More weight gain was associated with higher risk.

Keep in Mind: Important potential confounders, like activity level, diet, and alcohol use, were not included in the analysis.

✲

Therapy That Fits Your Life at 50 & Beyond

A woman with gray hair wearing glasses sits on a couch, reading a tablet in a cozy, well-lit setting.

Courtesy: Courtesy: BetterHelp AARP

There’s no single reason people start therapy. Sometimes it’s a major life change. Sometimes it’s stress, grief, relationships, or simply wanting a place to talk things through.

That’s why AARP® Online Therapy by BetterHelp is worth knowing about. BetterHelp is now the exclusive online therapy provider for AARP members, giving adults 50 and older access to licensed therapists through a flexible digital platform that can fit more easily into everyday life.

AARP members can get 30% off their first month of a BetterHelp subscription† or check whether they’re eligible to pay with insurance.

Learn More

Thank you for supporting our sponsors! They help us keep All Healthy free.

✥

Fitness

The Gym Hack That Actually Has Science Behind It

A person lifting a barbell with a focused posture, showcasing athletic wear and a gym setting in the background.

Kateryna Hliznitsova/Unsplash

Buff It Out: If you find your gym routine wearing on you at times, myo-reps might be exactly what you need. Developed by Norwegian strength coach Borge Fagerli in the mid-2000s, the technique strings multiple short sets together with only a few seconds of recovery in between. Research suggests that you can get the same muscle-building stimulus as traditional training in a fraction of the time.

How to Do It: To do them, pick a weight you can lift for around 10 to 15 reps and do your activation set, stopping one or two reps shy of failure. Then rest for about 10 to 20 seconds, and knock out a mini-set of four to five reps. Keep repeating that cycle until you can't hit three reps anymore. Stick to exercises where your form stays controlled when you're tired, like machines or dumbbells, and cap yourself at five mini-sets.

The Benefits: Research suggests myo-rep-style training can get the same amount of work done more than seven times faster than traditional sets. Because you're using lighter loads, it's also easier on your joints.

☼

SPOTLIGHT

Annie Murphy Paul

A woman with glasses smiles while crossing her arms, standing against a wall outdoors in a black and white setting.

ANNIE MURPHY PAUL
Author, Science Writer

Courtesy: Annie Murphy Paul

Annie Murphy Paul spent years as a freelance science writer, convinced that good thinking meant holing herself up and pushing through, until reporting her new book, The Extended Mind, changed her way of thinking. Research in cognitive science, she found, increasingly suggests that the brain works best when ideas are routed outward and back again rather than staying sealed inside the skull.

One of her most useful findings is about rest. For example, scrolling your phone during a break draws on the same cognitive resources you were using while typing and concentrating at your desk. But stepping outside or glancing out a window, even for as little as 40 seconds, restores attention in ways that staring at a second screen never will.

The social piece is equally concrete. Talking through an idea with someone else, or even just working near others, activates memory and motivation in ways that solo work cannot replicate. Paul used all this newfound knowledge to upgrade her work practices while writing the book, began regularly taking walks outside, and leaned on a longtime writers' group — and says she couldn't have finished it without them.

FOLLOW | READ | WATCH

➺

Quick Picks

Chilling Effect — Can icing aches and pains actually slow your recovery?

Spill the Beans — Here’s how to add more beans to your diet without feeling bloated.

Dodging the Reaper — Frequent users of this device had a 40% lower risk of early death.*

Bad Nail Day — What’s the risk of infection from a manicure or pedicure?

Put It Down — 3 of these cellphone habits could be taking a toll on your health.

^*Indicates a brand partnership

✾

What We're Cooking

Marry Me Chicken

Creamy chicken with sun-dried tomatoes and fresh parsley in a skillet, garnished with black pepper.

Courtesy: EatingWell

Serves: 4 | Cook Time: 20 minutes

The viral “marry me chicken” is so good, they say it could lead to a proposal. This quick, flavorful chicken cutlet is simmered in a creamy sauce with sun-dried tomatoes, shallots, white wine, and fresh parsley — it comes together with just six ingredients. Every bite is infused with oil from the sun-dried tomatoes, making the dish rich and comforting without feeling too heavy.

Get The Full Recipe

By clicking, you are agreeing to receive a daily recipe from All Healthy.

☞

This, Not That

Better Bathroom Reading

Bright bathroom featuring a sink, toilet, plants, and a window with hanging plants, all on a black and white checkered floor.

THIS

A person holding a smartphone, showing a scrolling screen with text and options.

NOT THAT

Phil Hearing/Unsplash, Charlesdeluvio/Unsplash

This: Nothing
Not That: Bringing Your Phone to the Toilet

The bathroom doesn’t need to become another scrolling station. Leaving your phone outside cuts down on mindless screen time and helps keep bathroom visits shorter — which your pelvic floor will probably appreciate.

✲

A Smarter Way to Start Therapy After 50

Finding the right support should not mean rearranging your life around waitlists, traffic, or limited appointment times.

AARP® Online Therapy by BetterHelp gives AARP members access to 30,000+ licensed therapists through video, phone, or messaging, all from home. It’s built for the real stuff life after 50 can bring: caregiving, retirement, loss, changing relationships, or simply wanting someone to talk to.

AARP members can get 30% off their first month of a BetterHelp subscription† or check if they’re eligible to pay with insurance.

See If You’re Eligible

Thank you for supporting our sponsors! They help us keep All Healthy free.

❦

HEALTHY HABIT

The Clean Start Cue

Before starting work, clear just one small area — your keyboard, a notebook, a corner of your desk. A tidy starting point reduces visual noise and makes it easier to settle into focus.

★

Final Thought

Layered mountain silhouettes in soft gray and blue hues under a hazy sky.

Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths.”

– Etty Hillesum, An Interrupted Life

Marek Piwnicki/Unsplash