The Skinny on the Metabolic Syndrome: Cutting the Fat

The overweight and obesity epidemic has fueled a dramatic rise
in the prevalence of something doctors call the “Metabolic
Syndrome”–the combination of abdominal obesity, diabetes, high
blood pressure and a particularly malignant form of high LDL
(“bad”) cholesterol. Recently published statistics suggest that
almost one half of adult Americans are overweight and one in
four are obese.

This new syndrome is a lethal risk factor for heart attacks and
strokes. The eleven year study by Kuopio found that middle-aged
men with metabolic syndrome were about three times more likely
to die of coronary artery disease than unaffected individuals,
and twice the risk of stroke. This combination of risk factors
is also vitally important for women, and several investigations
have evaluated their effects on women’s health. The Framingham
Heart Study found that diabetic women weighted more and hid
higher blood pressure than non-diabetic women. In addition,
their LDL (so-called “good” cholesterol) levels were lower than
those of non-diabetic women. A Finnish study of newly diagnosed
diabetic women determined likewise that they were more obese and
had lower good cholesterol levels than non-diabetic women. Sixty
percent of them were also taking medication for high blood
pressure.

The common denominator for this syndrome is abdominal obesity.
The Framingham Study found that as weight rises and falls, so
too do blood pressure and blood sugar levels. Obesity leads to
diabetes, and low good cholesterol. Dr. William Castelli,
director of the study, ahs described this characteristic pattern
of obesity: “When you put the ‘spare tire on at the waist, you
produce a different kind of LDL, much more atherogenic (causing
atherosclerosis). You raise your blood pressure and increase
your lipids (fats).” It is estimated that obese individuals
develop diabetes at more than twice the rate of others.

Why are such seemingly different problems such as obesity, high
blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol grouped together?
Because they are very much interrelated and there are similar or
identical methods to prevent and/or control them.

What to do?

The best approach to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight
has four basic components. None of them involves being on a diet:

1. Understand and modify your relationship with food. This will
enable you to be in control, rather than being under the control
of compulsive or rigid and unrealistic goals. According to
author Dr. Janet Greeson, who has managed not to regain the 150
pounds she lost more than 18 years ago, “Diets are not really
treating the person, and so if you focus on food as the problem,
you are not successful. The problem is the feelings a person
associates with food.”

2. Enjoy what you eat by becoming a conscious eater. This will
help you select healthy and satisfying food, including some of
your favorites, rather than limit you to rigid calorie-cutting
and self-deprivation. Experiment. Become a student of your own
behavior.

3. Exercise regularly. Physical activity is a powerful weapon in
weight control for several reasons. It burns calories, it
contributes to positive feelings and thus reduces the stresses
and emotions that cause overeating, and it restores a
consciousness of the body, which overweight people tend to lose.
Exercise allows you to reclaim yourself physically and thereby
strengthens you motivation to achieve and maintain healthy
weight.

4. Create a support system. This can come from family, friends
and/or a support group. Joining a structured weight loss program
like Weight Watchers can be invaluable. Such a program provides
you with a caring environment and people who both understand and
share your struggle with overeating. They help you to become
more honest about your eating habits and when you feel you may
be slipping, they are there to help.

Remember: We are more than what we eat, but what we eat can help
us to become less and therefore more of what we want to be.

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