BEIJING, Dec. 5 (Xinhuanet) -- U.S. researchers found that people of high fitness levels but of overweight or obesity had lower mortality risks than those of normal weight but low fitness levels, media reported Wednesday.

    The study involving 2,603 participants of 60 years old and up examined how physical fitness and body fat affected their death rates over 12 years.

    Among the 450 deaths, the least fit participants had a death rate four times higher than those ranked in the top for fitness. And the death rates for those with higher fitness levels were less than half of the rates for those who were unfit but weighed similar amounts.

    The researchers concluded that if obese people could do 30 minutes of moderate activity everyday and keep a healthful diet, they would be much healthier even if they were still a bit overweight or obese.

    "We should not ignore obesity. But what happens all too often is we focus nearly exclusively on obesity and forget the activity and fitness part," said Steven Blair, a professor in the Arnold School of Public Health at the University of South Carolina.

    "You shouldn't be scared and think, 'Oh, I'm overweight, I'm obese, it's useless for me to be physically active,'" said Dr. Xuemei Sui, a researcher of University of South Carolina who worked on the study.

    (Agencies)