Fat due to asthma or asthma linked to fat?

MONTREAL, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- People who are obese are more likely to report exercise-induced asthma, but asthma keeps many from exercising, Canadian researchers say.

Lead author Simon Bacon of Concordia University in Montreal points out asthma triggered by exercise may lead to a sedentary lifestyle and increased weight -- and can fuel a downward spiral to worsened health. Exercise-induced asthma affects up to 90 percent of asthma sufferers, Bacon says.

The study, published in The Physician and Sportsmedicine, found every one-point increase in body mass index score was associated with a 9 percent increase in the probability of reporting exercise-induced asthma.

Bacon and colleagues evaluated 673 people, 71 percent of whom reported exercise-induced asthma.

"Given the importance of exercise and regular physical activity in weight management, greater care should be taken when working with asthma patients to refer them to appropriate weight management specialists to help them control and safely reduce their weight," Bacon says in a statement.