New Delhi: If you're overweight, it's bad news for your heart. Obesity has long been a public health problem known to be responsible for cardiac worries.
With more than 300 million obese people worldwide - according to the 11th European Congress - and over 20 crore Indians obese as per the WHO, heart risk has increased by as much as 10 per cent over the past five years.
“It causes a patient to have high cholesterol levels, an increased deposition of cholesterol in arteries causing heart disease, decreases the capability to exercise and therefore the cardio vascular fitness,” says Chief Cardiologist, MAX Healthcare, Ashok Seth.
Excess fat can also be physically bad for the heart, specifically the heart muscle.
“It affects the coronary arteries and the heart muscle can become weak. It’s also known that overweight people put so much pressure on the heart that it can actually expand,” says Seth.
But is obesity itself an independent risk factor for cardiac disease? “Gross obesity is in itself a very important factor,” he explains.
And the problem is hitting home at even younger ages with more than 30 per cent of Indian children found to be obese, according to the WHO.
And the fallout is on many levels.
But there are some ways for you to improve your heart health.
“Don’t get disheartened, be psychologically positive and to change your destiny you have to be careful,” advises Seth.
It is predicted that by 2020, heart disease will be the number one killer world over. With the rate of heart attack rising in India its high time you set your heart on keeping all that extra fat away.
Comments
0 comment