A latest research has suggested that people with more body fat, no matter of what size they are, could have higher chances of dying at an early age in comparison to people with less body fat.

Contrary to that, high body-mass index (BMI) wasn’t linked to early death in the study. BMI is a measure of weight related to height, generally used to measure obesity.

According to the investigators, the findings backed the idea that BMI is a fairly basic measure that couldn’t reflect body composition of an individual, or be a good indicator of health.

Researcher Dr. William Leslie explained that for example, an individual with a lot of muscle mass could have a high BMI and, can technically be present in the ‘overweight’ category.

Leslie, a professor of medicine and radiology at the University of Manitoba, in Winnipeg, Canada, said that the link between body size and health is more nuanced as compared to the number on your bathroom scale.

Leslie said that it’s must to be attuned to what you are composed of, instead of just knowing your body weight.

The findings that appeared online on March 8 in the Annals of Internal Medicine may offer an explanation for the so-called ‘obesity paradox’.

It points towards a counterintuitive pattern that's been noticed in many studies: Overweight and obese people suffering from heart disease or other chronic ills tend to live longer as compared to thinner people having the same conditions.

Leslie explained that such studies, however, have been majorly dependent on BMI. He added that there is a possibility that higher BMI reflects more muscle mass and fitness, or less weight loss due to a chronic disease.