by FitnessSpecialist

Created on: April 18, 2008

With half of America's population now either significantly overweight or obese (two-thirds the population if you apply international standards(1) and an annual death toll from heart disease now approaching one million in the U.S., there are only one or two health issues more pressing than metabolic syndrome.

Metabolic syndrome is not a disease and, except for a few instances of rare gene mutations2). it is an entirely avoidable condition that will take a decade off your life. To put the cause of metabolic syndrome precisely where it belongs, metabolic syndrome is the result of a lifestyle choice that you make and it will literally kill you.

Metabolic syndrome, perhaps more descriptively dysmetabolic syndrome as it is sometimes called, is not a single issue disorder. Rather it refers to a cluster of metabolic disorders precipitated by excess fat (esp. abdominal visceral fat) acquired as a result of nutritional and activity lifestyle choices - specifically sedentary lifestyles, poor food choices and/or overeating. This cluster of metabolic disorders represents increased risk factors for, among other things, heart disease and Type II diabetes. The economic impact of this is approaching somewhere between 90 and 110 billion dollars per year in 2008 dollars.(3) To put that into perspective, it is approximately the same as the annual cost of the war in Iraq.

Factors Defining Metabolic Syndrome
Elevated tryglycerides. Triglycerides are a necessary part of life, a major source of energy and the most common form of fat found in your body. Within normal range, they are part of a healthy body. It is when they go above that range that triglycerides cause problems. By themselves, triglycerides rarely cause symptoms. It is when they appear together with other of the disorders defining metabolic syndrome that they become a concern.
Low HDL. Sometime called 'good cholesterol', high-density lipoproteins (HDL) function to transport fatty acids and cholesterol from the body to the liver where it can either be discarded or re-cycled. The hypothesis is that HDL removes LDL and VLDL from the arteries thus preventing or minimizing the likelihood of blockage or hardening. That has yet to be scientifically demonstrated but we do know that whatever the reason may be those with high level of HDL have far less heart disease.

Hypertension or high blood pressure. Blood pressure is a measure of the force blood exerts against the walls of your arteries. It is taken at two points: It is measured

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