Data from 527,662 working adults of average age 42 years was used for the study. The participants were categorized as normal weight (BMI, 20.0–24.9 kg•m−2), overweight (BMI, 25.0–29.9 kg•m−2), or obese (BMI ≥ 30.0 kg•m−2). They were also grouped by their activity level – regularly active, insufficiently active, and inactive. Cardiovascular health was evaluated according to the major risk factors for heart attack and stroke, specifically diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure. Logistic regression was used to determine the association between each BMI and physical activity group and the prevalence of CVD risk factors. About 42% of participants had normal weight, 41% were overweight, and 18% were obese. Approximately 63.5% were inactive, 12.3% were insufficiently active, and 24.2% were regularly active. Nearly 30% had high cholesterol, 15% had high blood pressure, and 3% had diabetes. In all the BMI groups, any activity was associated with a reduced risk of diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol. However, overweight and obese participants were at increased risk of CVD than the participants with normal weight, regardless of activity levels. Compared to inactive normal weight individuals, active obese people had about two times risk of having high cholesterol, about four times more likely to have diabetes, and nearly five times increased risk of high blood pressure. Hence, the findings of this study showed that weight loss is required to reduce the CVD risk in obese or overweight individuals. But increasing physical activity can have overall health benefits for all BMI categories. Reference: Pedro L Valenzuela et al. Joint association of physical activity and body mass index with cardiovascular risk: a nationwide population-based cross-sectional study, European Journal of Preventive Cardiology (2021).