Heart Disease is currently the leading cause of death between men and women. Every year, about 610,000 people die of heart disease, that means 1 in 4 every deaths. As a matter of fact, by 2030, 23.6 million will die from this. Coronary heart disease, most commonly known as Heart Disease, is when your heart does not get enough oxygen rich blood to fat deposits, like cholesterol, clog up your arteries preventing your heart getting the proper blood it needs.
Diabetes, especially type 2 diabetes, is also another very common issue that is rising among many Americans today. During the 1900’s, type 2 diabetes was originally named “Adult Onset Diabetes”, but that all changed since the 2000’s hit and many kids started to develop the condition due to poor lifestyle choices. Type 2 diabetes tends to develop when someone is overweight, partakes in an unhealthy lifestyle, heredity, and other factors. All of these conditions can reduce your lifespan by a considerable amount, and your waistline might be to blame.
In the article, “What Your Waistline Says About Your Health”, by the Heart and Vascular Institute at UPMC, states that Visceral fat, which is the fat around your waist, is linked to hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, insulin resistance, and high cholesterol, all of which can increase your risk of heart disease and other health issues, which can ultimately lead to a heart attack or stroke, and potentially even death. The recommended waistline limit is 40 inches for men and 35 for women. Lana Burgess, the author of the article, “Why is the waist-hip ratio important?” states that another scary consequence of having a large waist is fertility. Burgess writes: “A 2002 study found that women with a WHR of over 0.80 have a lower pregnancy rate than those with a lower WHR, regardless of their BMI.” Burgess is saying that no matter what your BMI is, your waste can still prove to be very harmful. This goes to all people as well, not just pregnant women.
The reason this is is because while some may have a healthy weight according to a BMI calculator, sometimes the body seems to put the fat towards the waist instead of other places, however many people’s bodies can distribute the extra fat without having to pile it all up on the waistline. Burgess stresses the importance that your waist size ration should not be a definite decision maker on your overall health. In the article “War on Waist: Why it Matters and When It’s a Risk” by James Bullen, Bullen stresses the importance of keeping your waistline at an important level. Bullen writes: “But abdominal fat also produces more of the inflammatory chemicals that interfere with the body’s normal function than fat stored elsewhere on the body, like the buttocks or thighs.” In this part of the article, Bullen tries to inform people that not only can a larger waist size result in severe complications, but can also affect your everyday life functions as simple as digestion.
Overall, to live a healthy and long life it is not only important to eat healthy and make sure you get plenty of physical fitness, it is also important to keep your waistline in check, or else serious health problems may be lingering just around the corner.
