Physical finds Bush healthy – if heavier

WASHINGTON – President Bush’s doctors pronounced him healthy and in better shape than most men his age Tuesday, but the president seemed a little upset about packing on some extra pounds.

Doctors treated a small precancerous lesion on his left arm but indicated it was nothing serious. They told him to use sunscreen and wear a hat.

Bush got the works at his annual physical. It took more than four hours and was conducted by a team of nine doctors, overseen by White House physician Richard Tubb.

The doctors found “him to be fit for duty and have every reasonable expectation that he will remain fit for duty for the duration of his presidency,” they said in a written statement.

Before leaving the National Naval Medical Center in suburban Maryland, Bush – an avid mountain biker who is known to be intensely interested in his fitness level – homed in on the negative.

“I’m doing fine. My health is fine. I probably ate too many birthday cakes,” said the president, who celebrated his 60th birthday on numerous occasions last month.

The scale showed Bush at 196 pounds. He was 191.6 pounds at his exam in July 2005. The physical also found the president shorter by a quarter of an inch, at 5 feet 11 1/2 inches.

A December 2004 physical showed Bush had gained 6 pounds since the summer of 2003 – a development he blamed on eating too many doughnuts during his re-election campaign. The gain prompted Bush to a renewed commitment to exercise and fitness. He was rewarded last July with a loss of 8 pounds.

Then came this year’s addition.

“My guess is, he’s determined to lose it,” said White House press secretary Tony Snow.

A four-page medical summary that accompanied the doctor’s brief statement said Bush remains in the “superior” fitness category for a man of his age, in the 99th percentile.