DID YOU KNOW YOUR WAISTLINE IS A KEY PREDICTOR TO HEART DISEASE?
According to Helene Glassberg, MD, director of the Preventive Cardiology and Lipid Center at Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia, “The heavier you are, the higher your risk of heart disease, period.”
Excess weight often means higher-than-normal levels of both cholesterol and triglycerides, indications of how much fat may be also floating around in your blood.
“The higher your level of blood fats, the greater your risk of developing a clot significant enough to block blood flow to your heart,” says Glassberg.
It seems that even extra pounds affect healthy hearts. In a study published in the journal Circulation, doctors found that lugging around those extra pounds appears to subtly weaken your heart’s ability to pump blood — one of the first steps leading to eventual heart failure. However, weight alone is not the primary concern. If you have thin arms and legs but a bulging tummy, you may be at equally high — or even higher — risk than an overweight or obese person. Emerging research points to “central obesity” as a key culprit in bringing on heart disease.
Studies published in the American Journal of Physiology in 2005, indicate that fat cells do hold the capability to produce hormones and other inflammatory substances that increase our risk of heart disease.
“The Spare Tire,” that notorious band of excess chub around your midsection, is a primary culprit. Why? Doctors say that fat around the midsection acts differently than fat on your thighs or on your bottom.
“We used to think that all adipose [fat] tissue was neutral, but as it turns out, it’s an active organ that makes all kinds of substances that we now know can cause, or at least stimulate the atherosclerotic process,” says James Underberg, MD, Director of the Bellevue Hospital Lipid Clinic, in New York City. National criteria propose that a 40-inch waist in men and 35-inch waist in women predicted an increased risk for heart disease.
In a study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, doctors found that middle aged women who carried more visceral fat in their tummy region were at higher risk for metabolic syndrome, a constellation of conditions that include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and insulin resistance, all leading to a higher risk of heart disease.
The good news is that losing weight can make a huge difference: often it can dramatically reduce the risk factors associated with heart disease. “Even a minimal weight loss can make an enormous difference. Your blood pressure will drop; your lipid profile [cholesterol] will get better. It’s remarkable how much good you can do for your body by just shedding a few pounds,” says cardiologist Chuck McCauley, MD, director of the Marshfield Healthy Lifestyles Program in Marshfield, Wis.
According to McCauley, loose 10 to 15 pounds and watch your blood pressure drop 10 or 15 points. Cholesterol levels, he says, respond even better. “I’ve seen people drop their LDL [bad cholesterol] from 160 down to 90 or 100 just by losing 10 pounds.”
And, if at the same time you can condense your waistline and reduce your total BMI (body mass index) you are on a road to a healthier heart. According to McCauley, “Every inch and every pound you lose can add years to your life.”