The health risks of those suffering from obesity are far more alarming than we once thought, as a new research published in the British medical journal The Lancet reportedly suggests that it has the potential to reduce life expectancy by up to eight years and cut healthy life by 19 years, according to the news outlet Xinhuanet.

The shocking results of the health risks is especially alarming as one-third of American adults, or 78.6 million people, are considered obese, according to The Huffington Post.

The health risks of obesity reportedly include diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

The age in which you put on the extra pounds is also a key factor and the worst outcomes were reportedly in people who gained an unhealthy amount of weight at younger ages, stated the study's lead author, professor and epidemiologist Steven Grover, M.D.

For the study, Grover and his colleagues reportedly used data from 4,000 people involved in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to analyze the contribution of excess body weight to years of life lost and healthy years of life lost. Grover reportedly found that very obese people could lose up to eight years of life while obese people could lose up to six years of life.

People who were simply overweight could reportedly lose up to three years of life.

"The pattern is clear - the more an individual weighs and the younger their age, the greater the effect on their health," Grover said in a written release.

He added, "In terms of life expectancy, we feel being overweight is as bad as smoking cigarettes"

People are reportedly generally considered overweight if they have a body mass index (BMI) of 25 to 29.9 while those who are considered obese have a BMI of 30 and above. A healthy BMI is reportedly generally defined as 18.5 to 25.