What are the Five Signs of Metabolic Syndrome
Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of conditions, including:
- Abdominal obesity
- High triglyceride levels
- High fasting blood sugar levels
- High blood pressure
- Low HDL “good” cholesterol
When a person has three or more of these metabolic risk factors occurring together, they are diagnosed as having “metabolic syndrome”.
Causes
The two main causes of metabolic syndrome are if an individual is overweight or obese and if they have a
lack of physical activity. Studies show that with an hour of resistance exercise per week, there is a 29% lower risk of developing metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is also directly linked with insulin resistance, which is more common in obese and inactive people. A healthy digestive system breaks down food into glucose, and if you experience insulin resistance, your cells will not respond in the standard way to insulin, which is the hormone that assists glucose in entering cells and managing blood sugar levels. If this occurs over a long period of time, then the body is unable to make enough insulin to maintain normal glucose levels, which can result in diabetes. Approximately 85% of people who have type 2 diabetes also have metabolic syndrome.
Other conditions that may also play a role in metabolic syndrome are gallstones and breathing problems
during sleep (such as sleep apnea).
Recommended Treatment
Recommended lifestyle changes are the standard treatment for metabolic syndrome:
- Heart-healthy eating
- Effective stress management
- Losing and maintaining a healthy weight (fat mass weight)
- Increased physical activity
- No smoking
Further Information
A very important point to also consider is that an individual does not have to be overweight / obese to have metabolic syndrome. If an individual has three or more of the five factors associated with metabolic
syndrome, they are at a much larger risk to poor health over 3me and a shorter lifespan.
