Phoenix Fitness Clubs in Hamilton, Dundas and Ancaster

Metabolic syndrome is not a disease but recent studies suggest that almost 47 million Americans - an increase of 60% over the last 10 years - are at greater risk of dying because of it.


A cluster of troubling disorders, metabolic syndrome (MES) is defined by the National Cholesterol Education Program as any three of the following:


* high blood pressure, (130/85 or higher) and abnormal lipids
* high triglyceride levels
* low HDL, or good cholesterol
* high fasting blood sugar or resistance to insulin
* abdominal obesity calculated as a waist circumference of greater than 35 inches for women and 40 inches for men

“Metabolic syndrome predicts who will develop heart disease and diabetes. Can you develop heart disease or diabetes if you don’t have these risk factors? Yes, but it’s unlikely. Can you have these risk factors and not develop one of these diseases? Yes, it’s possible, but MES is very predictive,” says Dr. Darwin Deen of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx.

According to Dr. Deen, who chairs the nutrition education task force of the American College of Nutrition, MES predicts which diabetics will get heart disease sooner. Among smokers, it predicts who will and won’t get heart disease.

“These risk factors are a reflection of a metabolism that is going wrong and if it’s not fixed, disease will result.”

Research suggests that men with three or more factors of metabolic syndrome are significantly more at risk to suffer a heart attack, stroke or develop diabetes.

If you’re older, African or Mexican-American, overweight, have a family history of diabetes or if you’ve been diagnosed with hypertension or cardiovascular disease, you are predisposed to develop MES. In the case of women, risk is greater if you have polycystic ovary syndrome, which causes the body to over produce male hormones.

“There are certainly some genetic predisposing factors but it’s basically a lifestyle disease. Some people will never exercise, will eat too much and yet not gain weight or have abnormal lipids or blood pressure. But most people who overeat and don’t exercise will gain weight and have these problems,” says Dr. Deen, who describes MES as a function of contemporary life.

“You can’t catch if from anyone else. It’s the result of our modern lifestyle of having an abundance of food available that we don’t have to work very hard to get. The value of recognizing it is that you can change your destiny.”

Recognition is the first step to both prevention and cure. While MES is alarmingly accurate as a precursor to serious disease, it also represents a wonderful opportunity for prevention.

Improving Your Odds:

* Eat less and exercise more. Begin with 30 minutes a day.
* Lose weight. Even a 5% weight loss can improve insulin levels and reduce blood pressure.
* Make whole grains a part of your daily diet. Increase your dietary reliance on beans, fruits, vegetables and fish.
* Avoid simple carbohydrates.
* Measure your waist circumference.
* Use a pedometer to count your steps every day.
* Quit smoking. Cigarettes increase insulin resistance.
* Regularly check blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels.

“Make a plan for change and stick to it,” says Dr. Deen. “If you don’t reach your goals, so what? Set new ones. Look for ways to make yourself healthier.”