There is no denying the fact that obesity has been on the rise among today’s generation and has been proven making life uncomfortable. Nearly a third of adults and quarter of children today are overweight, according to a report by the global burden of disease study published in the Lancet Medical Journal.

However, obesity also comes with much more serious health issues including heart disease. The number of years spent obese or overweight contributes to higher likelihood of heart damage. For each 10 years that a person spent obese, their risk increased 1.25 times.

How does obesity contribute to heart disease?

In particular, there’s a clear link between obesity and heart disease. The obesity and heart disease correlation has been found in many areas, including that it can increase cholesterol levels, clog arteries, elevate blood pressure, and lead to diabetes, which is a factor in developing heart disease.

Heart diseases caused by obesity

Here are some of the diseases affecting your heart health due to obesity.

High Blood Pressure – Obese people require more blood to supply oxygen and nutrients to their bodies, which causes an increase in blood pressure because the heart has to beat with more force.

Heart Palpitations – Obesity increases the risk of irregular heart beat (arrhythmia). This condition, called atrial fibrillation, can cause blood clots to form, leading to heart failure, stroke, and other issues.

Increased Cholesterol Level – Most of us know that obesity can cause a spike in bad cholesterol and triglyceride levels, but what we don’t know is that it also lowers the good high-density lipoproteins (HDL) cholesterol.

Affects Heart Attack Recovery – Staying obese after a heart attack means, the person is at risk of getting another heart attack or any other heart related conditions. But treatment after heart attack often focuses on maintaining a healthier weight.

Lose weight, get healthy and reduce risk

Obesity is one of the very few conditions that have the cheapest treatment- a healthy lifestyle. This can be challenging, but there are a number of steps you can take to address obesity and heart disease, including:

• Eating a healthy diet
• Regular exercise
• Bariatric surgery

So considering these risks and heart conditions, let us take a few hours of the day or weekend to jot down how you can make your lifestyle better. It can be taking the stairs instead of the lift, walking to nearby shops instead of using vehicles, avoiding snacks in between meals, reducing the portion of meals etc.