London: A Weight loss new study says that obese who lost some weight by eating less and exercising more had better cardiovascular health.

The benefits of the weight loss could be seen included decreased thickness of heart muscle, improved pumping and relaxation functions of the heart and decreased thickness of the carotid artery walls.

The researchers studied 60 moderately obese people, aged between 22 and 64 years, at regular intervals, and 46 people (78 percent) completed the entire two-year follow-up period.

The subjects were instructed to eat low-calorie diets (1,200 to 1,500 calories for women and 1,500 to 1,800 calories for men) and to exercise for about three and a half hours per week, principally walking.

On average, they lost weight for about six months, reaching a maximum loss of nine percent body weight or 22 pounds.