Metabolic Syndrome
What is it?
Metabolic syndrome, is a group of health problems that when found together increase ones risk of developing a serious health concern such as heart disease, stroke, and diabetes.
These health prolems are surprisingly common and include abdominal obesity (too much fat around the waist area), high blood pressure, high blood sugars, and abnormal cholesterol levels.
Having 3 or more of these health problems confirms that someone has Metabolic Syndrome.
Why is Metabolic Syndrome Important?
As mentioned, Metabolic Syndrome increases the risk for developing heart disease, one of the leading causes of death in Canada (and worldwide). Metabolic Syndrome has also been linked to other serious health conditions such as kidney disease, liver disease, and diabetes.
Even if you don’t meet the criteria for Metabolic Syndrome, you may still be at risk because obesity alone is an independent risk factor for developing Metabolic Syndrome, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
What Can I Do to Treat or Reverse Metabolic Syndrome?
Safe and effective treatment of Metabolic Syndrome is critical in preventing long term health complications and chronic disease.
Metabolic Syndrome is comprised of several different risk factors as mentioned above. However only one of these risk factors when adequately treated results in an improvement of all of the others, and thus is able to reverse Metabolic Syndrome. This risk factor is obesity.
To illustrate this point: If someone with Metabolic Syndrome treats their blood pressure with medication, the decrease in blood pressure would have no effect on their abnormal cholesterol or high blood sugar. The same could be said for the treatment of high cholesterol and blood sugar. While medications may be used in some cases, they do not address the underlying cause of problem.
However, if someone with Metabolic Syndrome effectively treats their obesity by losing weight and decreasing the amount of fat accumulation around the waist, we would expect to see a decrease in blood pressure, and a normalization of their blood sugars and cholesterol, effectively reversing the condition.
Therefore, the most effective treatment to Metabolic Syndrome is based on diet and lifestyle interventions which help people effectively lose weight. Losing weight increases insulin sensitivity, which lowers blood sugar and normalizes cholesterol and blood pressure. The Slim Health Weight Loss program is a practical, personalized dietary and exercise program that helps people do just this – Lose weight and keep it off thereby improving their health and preventing chronic disease!
Do You Have Metabolic Syndrome?
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