Lose Weight to Protect Your Heart

The mere thought of a heart attack is frightening. So frightening, in fact, that many of us live in a state of denial. Deep down you know that your lifestyle isn't very healthy, but you try not to think about possible consequences. Unfortunately, this denial can result in the exact thing you are so afraid of. But there's a lot you can do to protect your heart and avoid cardiovascular disease and heart attacks. One of the most important steps you can take is to lose weight. Whether you're pleasantly plump or quite obese, losing some excess pounds will do your heart good.

Being overweight is a known risk factor for heart disease. (Other risk factors include smoking, having a family history of heart disease, age, having diabetes or prediabetes, and more.) Even if you're only a few pounds over the ideal, you could still be exposing yourself to danger.

Your heart works hard day and night to circulate blood throughout your entire body. Even a few unnecessary pounds will put additional strain on your heart. This is because millions of extra tiny blood vessels are required to feed each pound. Your heart has to pump blood through all those blood vessels, increasing its work. When you lose the fat, the superfluous blood vessels are absorbed into the body and the stress on your heart is reduced.

Where have you put on weight? Are you carrying most of your fat around the stomach area, or does your body get fatter all over? Scientists have discovered that having belly fat, in particular, puts you at greater risk of heart disease and heart attacks, compared to having extra fat spread all over the body. Measure your waistline, and if it's more than 35 inches, take heed. It's important for you to attack this belly fat and protect your health by exercising and losing some weight.

Being overweight is often associated with high levels of LDL cholesterol, the "bad" cholesterol that can lead to heart disease. Losing weight, especially hazardous belly fat, will increase your levels of HDL cholesterol ("good" cholesterol) while decreasing the amount of LDL cholesterol in your system.

For the sake of your heart and health, why not make a start towards integrating healthy eating principles and good amounts of exercise into your daily life? Even a tiny step in the right direction will do. You're not ready to completely change your lifestyle? That's fine, make just one small change today. And another small change tomorrow. Ask yourself where you will be and how you will feel six months in the future. Begin treating yourself to a healthier lifestyle right now and in six months you could be a new person. Put it off for a few weeks, or months, and you could be condemning yourself to the risks of obesity.

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