CLEVELAND -- A study released Wednesday shows there may be another major drawback to being overweight, besides the risk of serious conditions such as diabetes and heart disease.

The Ohio State study says severely overweight people may be more sensitive to pain, Cleveland television station WEWS reported.

The study makes perfect sense to elementary school teacher Sheila Delzani, who knows what it's like on both sides.

Three years ago, Delzani had gastric bypass surgery and lost 100 pounds.

Though she didn't realize it when she was heavy, she realizes now that everything was more painful.

"I don't hurt -- my hips don't hurt, my knees don't hurt. And on a day that maybe that I have done something like the typical normal person, there is just a little bit of pain, but it has lessened," said Delzani.

What makes this pain study even more disheartening for people who are obese is that they are more likely to feel pain in the first place, the station reported.

Dr. Aviv Ben-Meir, a gastric bypass surgeon at St. Vincent Charity Hospital, said almost every one of his bypass patients complains of pain, but is encouraged by how he's seen the pain go away with the weight.

"Both nationally and in my experience, more than 90 percent of patients who have bariatric surgery, after they've lost a dramatic amount of weight, have either no complaint or very few complaints," said Ben-Meir.

The study does not address why this happens, but it does call attention to the fact that if an obese person tries to lose weight by starting an exercise program, pain might discourage him from continuing, which is a real Catch-22.

The study is based on actual nerve reflexes, so it's more objective than just asking a person how much pain he feels, the station reported.