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Obese and overweight firefighters are not receiving weight management advice from their health care providers, a new research has found. 

According to national guidelines, Health Care Professionals (HCP) should advise patients on the importance of healthy weight. 

Firefighters have reportedly high rates of obesity. Cardiovascular events are also one of the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths in firefighters. 

The study based its findings on data on self-reported HCP weight recommendations and measured BMI from a 2011-2012 national sample of male firefighters. The study recorded HCP recommendations as no advice, maintain, gain, or lose weight. Further the BMI was categorized as normal, overweight, class 1, class 2 or class 3 obese. 

According to the study, 96 percent of the firefighters reported visiting an HCP past year among that, 69 percent firefighters and 48 percent of class I to III obese firefighters reported receiving no weight advice. 

The study has been published in the  Center for Disease Control's journal Preventing Chronic Disease.