Obesity & the Heart

I cannot believe that excess weight requires the heart to work harder. Really? How?

Obesity doesn’t just impact the brain, it impacts your heart, as well. For example, those with increased belly fat had a 30 percent higher risk of AAA (Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm)

 Overweight and obesity puts you at a higher risk for high blood pressure, increased blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and heart disease. As your BMI rises, so does your risk of Coronary Heart Disease (CHD)

Estimates are the body contains from 60,000 to 100,000 miles of blood vessels—each pound of excess fat requires 5 miles of new blood vessels. Do the math: 50 pounds of excess fat translates into 250 miles of blood vessels through which the heart must pump blood. No wonder obesity and heart disease go hand in hand, your heart must work harder to pump blood through extra miles of blood vessels.