Cardiovascular Disease
In this section of Seattle Organic Restaurants I’m going to talk about cardiovascular disease. 1.3 million heart attacks and 800,000 strokes happen every year in America. People with high blood pressure and high level of cholesterol are more likely to have a heart attack. Unlike what people think even a mild elevation in blood pressure or cholesterol level can lead to heart attack.
Cardiovascular diseases affect different organs in the body from arteries and veins to the heart. The most known manifestation of cardiovascular disease is heart attack. But there are also other health issues like strokes and brain attacks that can have long term devastating effect on a person’s health.
Can Obesity increase the Chances of Cardiovascular Disease?
High blood pressure, diabetes and adverse cholesterol levels are more likely in those who are obese or overweight. Obesity is the main root of cardiovascular disease. The seeds of cardiovascular diseases are planted at the very early stages of life and factors like diet, the environment of the fetus, weight gain and lack of physical activity are directly related to cardiovascular disease. The heart of an obese person has to do a lot more pumping to push a larger amount of blood volume through the body. In order for the heart to compensate for that excessive amount of blood, the heart muscles have to thicken up drastically. The heart muscles that have thickened up starts to weaken over time and as a result the cells start to change and weaken and that will lead to heart failure or heart dilation.
The heart muscle is like any other muscles in your body but it never rests. The heart is continuously dependent on the blood supply and if the blood supply for some reason gets interrupted (in case of a heart attack) the heart muscles are going to get seriously damaged in a matter of seconds to minutes. Ideal cardiovascular health is dependent on several factors and they include normal blood pressure, optimal level of cholesterol, normal body weight (healthy BMI), not having diabetes, regular physical activity, not smoking and pursuing a healthy diet.
Statistics show that in the United States only 1% of individuals meet all these factors for an ideal cardiovascular health. Being obese and overweight is the root of cardiovascular diseases. Being overweight directly affects high blood pressure and the risk of developing diabetes.
