Preventing and treating obesity, but also reducing overweight, is essential to ensure cardiovascular health. Here’s why.
Obesity, overweight and cardiovascular health
Obesity affects 523 million people globally (Roth et al., 2019), with a prevalence almost double that of 30 years ago (1990). And it is directly related to cardiovascular disease, which in 80% of cases affects obese and overweight people.
Overweight and obesity are thus now the leading cause of cardiovascular diseases, which in the 1990s of the last century were instead mainly attributed to cigarette smoking. (1) And this group of diseases still represents the leading cause of premature mortality globally.
BMI as an indicator of risk
BMI(body mass index) is a reference value that is calculated by dividing weight (in kg) by height squared (m2). The Ministry of Health has prepared an easy calculation tool, at this link.
Checking BMI is important given that:
- Already from the high end of normal weight (22.5-25 kg/m2), the risk of all-cause mortality increases by 30% for every 5 kg/m2 increase, (2)
- overweight (BMI between 25 and 29.9 kg/m2) doubles the likelihood of developing hypertension, compared with the normal-weight condition (BMI 18.5-24.99), (3)
- obesity (BMI >35) increases risk factors, including from hypertension, dyslipidemia and type 2 diabetes. In these cases, the risk of heart attack and stroke is advanced by 10 years and with greater severity. (4)
How to defend yourself
Obesity is a disease and as such deserves to be managed with the support of the appropriate health centers. For overweight, in addition to the support of a nutritionist, it is advisable to review one’s eating style and introduce regular exercise.
Excessive intakes of saturated fats, sugars, and salt-which are poisonous to excess weight-can easily be avoided as early as the food shelf selection stage. In Italy thanks to the Yuka app, which is largely based on the NutriScore system.
Notes
(1) Roth G, Mensah G, Johnson C, et al. Global Burden of Cardiovascular Diseases and Risk Factors, 1990-2019. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2020 Dec, 76 (25) 2982-3021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc.2020.11.010
(2) Whitlock G, Lewington S, Sherliker P, et al. Body-mass index and cause-specific mortality in 900 000 adults: collaborative analyses of 57 prospective studies. Lancet. 2009; 373:1083-1096
(3) World Health Organization (WHO). Cardiovascular disease: avoiding heart attacks and strokes. Questions and Answers. 2015
(4) Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). GBD comparison. Viz Hub. 2022. https://vizhub.healthdata.org/gbd-compare/
Professional journalist since January 1995, he has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and periodicals (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). She is the author of journalistic surveys on food, she has published the book "Reading labels to know what we eat".
