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Tipping The Scales: Trump In 'Very Good Health Overall,' Navy Doctor Says

President Trump returns to the White House after undergoing his annual physical exam at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Feb. 8. The report was released on Thursday.
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President Trump returns to the White House after undergoing his annual physical exam at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Feb. 8. The report was released on Thursday.

President Trump's doctor says he's in "very good health overall." But Trump has gained four pounds in the last year, tipping the president into the obese category.

The president underwent a four-hour physical at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center last week. Limited test results were made public on Thursday.

A memo from the president's doctor, Navy Cmdr. Sean Conley, listed Trump's weight as 243 pounds, up from 239 pounds last year. Trump's height is listed as 6'3", for a body mass index of 30.4. A BMI over 30 is considered obese.

Trump had narrowly avoided the obesity label last year. His physician at the time recommended that the president try to lose at least 10 pounds through a combination of improved diet and exercise.

Dr. Ronny Jackson acknowledged last year that Trump had little interest in exercise, but there were reports for a time that the president was eating more salads.

Jackson also recommended last year that the president increase the dosage of his anti-cholesterol medicine. That appears to have had some effect. Trump's LDL, or "bad," cholesterol dropped from 142 last year to 122 this year. His HDL, or "good," cholesterol also dropped, from 67 to 58.

Trump received routine vaccinations for shingles and pneumonia.

While Jackson provided reporters with an extended briefing on last year's medical exam, this year's report was more cryptic.

"It is my determination that the President remains in very good health overall," Conley wrote in a one-and-a-quarter page memo. "There were no findings of significance or changes to report on his physical exam."

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Scott Horsley is NPR's Chief Economics Correspondent. He reports on ups and downs in the national economy as well as fault lines between booming and busting communities.