People who are overweight have an increased risk of suffering a heart attack even if they are otherwise healthy, a new study has found.

According to the findings, even if a person has healthy blood pressure, cholesterol levels and blood glucose levels, they are still at risk if they are carrying excess weight.

Previous research has suggested that some people are not affected by the negative health effects of overweight and obesity. In medical literature, they are referred to as ‘metabolically healthy obese', while some media refers to them as ‘fat but fit'.

UK researchers decided to look into the link between excess weight and the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), a condition in which not enough blood gets through to the heart as a result of clogged arteries. This can result in a heart attack.

The study found that being overweight, even if otherwise healthy, increased a person's risk of CHD by 26% compared to those with a healthy weight. If a person was considered obese and healthy, their risk of CHD was 28% higher.

"Our findings suggest that if a patient is overweight or obese, all efforts should be made to help them get back to a healthy weight, regardless of other factors. Even if their blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol appear within the normal range, excess weight is still a risk factor," commented the study's lead author, Dr Camille Lassale, of University College London.

She said that these findings ‘challenge the concept of the healthy obese'.

This marked the largest study of its kind to date. It involved data from more than a half a million people in 10 European countries.

"I think there is no longer this concept of healthy obese. If anything, our study shows that people with excess weight who might be classed as ‘healthy' haven't yet developed an unhealthy metabolic profile. That comes later in the timeline, then they have an event, such as a heart attack," commented researcher, Dr Ioanna Tzoulaki, of Imperial College London.

Details of these findings are published in the European Heart Journal.