We accept most insurance providers including Medicare!
Call our Main Number: (703) 865-6490
We accept most insurance providers including Medicare!
Call our Main Number: (703) 865-6490
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As three in four adults in the United States can attest, weight gain doesn’t happen overnight; it’s a gradual process that occurs over time. Heart disease, the nation’s leading cause of death, also develops gradually. Often, the two are related.
How? Carrying too much fat can set the stage for serious health problems that drastically increase your risk of heart disease.
At Nova Physician Wellness Center, we know that weight control is an integral component of chronic disease prevention. This February, in honor of American Heart Month, our team is taking a closer look at how weight loss can improve your cardiovascular health, protect against heart disease, and support your long-term well-being.
Beyond the number on the scale
Weight loss isn’t just about seeing a lower number on the scale or wearing a smaller pant size; it’s also about protecting your long-term health. But what, exactly, does that mean?
Besides placing increased strain on your cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, endocrine, and musculoskeletal systems, excess fat often accumulates in your midsection, around your vital organs. Altogether, these changes help accelerate chronic disease development.
The most significant chronic disease risk associated with extra weight is heart disease, which happens to be responsible for one-third of all deaths in the U.S. each year.
Weight and cardiovascular health
Extra weight is a key driver of insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes as well as high blood pressure (hypertension) and sleep apnea, which are linked to kidney disease, heart attack, and stroke.
Conversely, losing excess weight reduces your risk of developing these chronic health conditions, or stops existing conditions from worsening. Reaching a healthier weight can prevent, improve, or even help reverse:
Hypertension
High blood pressure is a common early effect of weight gain. Why? Extra weight strains your cardiovascular system, making your heart and blood vessels work harder to supply blood to your body. Excess fat can also damage your kidneys, which help regulate blood pressure. In most cases, weight loss can help reverse the problem.
High cholesterol
When you’re overweight, you’re more likely to have higher total cholesterol levels, higher levels of “bad” LDL cholesterol, lower levels of “good” HDL cholesterol, and higher triglyceride levels. Weight loss can help normalize your blood lipid levels and protect your heart health.
Type 2 diabetes
Excess fat puts your body into a state of chronic, low-grade inflammation that affects how it uses insulin to regulate blood sugar, making insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes much more likely. By damaging and narrowing arterial walls, high blood pressure and cholesterol levels actively accelerate insulin resistance.
While nearly 90% of people with Type 2 diabetes are overweight or obese, most can greatly improve — and in some cases, fully reverse — the condition through weight loss.
Sleep apnea
Excess weight is a major risk factor for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a form of sleep disordered breathing that causes numerous respiratory pauses in the night.
These repeated oxygen drops trigger the ongoing release of stress hormones, which lead to frequent blood pressure spikes, heart muscle strain, and vascular damage. Sleep apnea management, including weight loss, is essential for protecting your long-term heart health.
Heart disease and stroke
Excess weight, high blood pressure, unhealthy blood lipid levels, diabetes, and sleep apnea are top risk factors for heart disease, heart attack, and stroke. By itself, having diabetes essentially doubles your risk of heart disease.
Even moderate weight loss can help
The adverse cardiovascular effects of excess weight tend to emerge in a cascade-like fashion: You might develop insulin resistance, sleep apnea, and high blood pressure first, but before long, you have high cholesterol, Type 2 diabetes, and heart disease, bringing a much higher risk of heart attack or stroke.
Luckily, shedding as little as 5-15% of your weight can help prevent these problems, stop their progression, or even make them go away. By improving insulin sensitivity and blood sugar control, normalizing blood pressure and cholesterol, and removing extra strain from your heart and blood vessels, weight loss is a major tool in heart disease prevention.
Benefits that go beyond heart health
Beyond reducing your heart disease risk, weight loss can put you on the path toward improved overall wellness, helping you avoid other serious health concerns that are also more common with excess weight, including:
- Metabolic syndrome (nonalcoholic fatty liver disease)
- Digestive problems (acid reflux, gallbladder disease)
- Osteoarthritis pain and stiffness (degenerative joint disease)
- Mental health conditions (depression, eating disorders)
- Sexual function issues (erectile dysfunction, low libido)
As medical weight loss specialists who are dedicated to supporting your wellness needs at every level, our team knows that the main path to weight loss — healthy dietary patterns combined with regular exercise — are also two key components of heart-healthy living.
It’s a win-win, and we’re here to help you every step of the way.
To learn more, schedule a visit at Nova Physician Wellness Center today. We have offices in Fairfax, Lansdowne, Vienna, Arlington, Charlottesville, Sterling, and Woodbridge, Virginia, as well as Rockville, Maryland.