Many people can do with lowering the risk factors that lead to heart disease. Metabolic syndrome is characterized by a group of metabolic risk factors in one person. These include elevated blood pressure. Abdominal obesity (excessive fat tissue in and around the abdomen), insulin resistance or glucose intolerance (the body can’t properly use insulin or blood sugar).
Incorporate as many lifestyle changes as possible. Such as eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly and losing weight. This will dramatically reduce the risk of diseases associated with metabolic syndrome such as diabetes and heart disease.
Make dietary changes and stick to them! Eat plenty of natural wholegrain foods, vegetables and fruit. To help with weight loss, reduce the amount of food eaten and limit foods high in fat or sugar.
Reduce saturated fats such as meat, full cream dairy and many processed foods as this will help improve your cholesterol levels. Also reduce the amount of alcohol to less than two standard drinks a day as this may help to lower triglyceride levels.
Increase your physical activity level as regular exercise improves and raises the level of HDL (‘good’) cholesterol in your blood. This helps which helps remove excess cholesterol from your body and protect against heart disease. Exercised muscle cells are also more sensitive to insulin.
Manage your weight by increasing physical activity and improving eating habits will help you lose excess body fat. As a result, your blood pressure may drop and your cells will be more sensitive to insulin.
Quit smoking as smoking increases your risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and cancer and lung disease. Quitting will have many health benefits, especially if you have metabolic syndrome.
Lifestyle changes are extremely important in the management of metabolic syndrome. Sometimes medication may be necessary to manage the different conditions.
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