Duration of overweight influences the risk of heart disease

How does years of overweight affect the heart??

There are several causes of heart disease - These include, for example, obesity. New US research now suggests that it's not just adiposity that increases the risk of heart disease, but also how long someone has been overweight in their lives.

The researchers at Johns Hopkins University found in their recent research that the period of time people are overweight in their lives has a major impact on the development of heart disease. The results of the study were published in the English-language journal "Clinical Chemistry".

If people were overweight for years, it also increases the risk of heart disease at a later age. (Image: vladimirfloyd / fotolia.com)

For the study, 9,062 subjects were examined

In the study, a total of 9,062 participants without a history of cardiovascular disease were studied. These were under medical supervision between the year 1987 and the year 1998. The results show that the number of years in which people are overweight leads to a significant risk factor for the development of heart problems later in life.

What were participants examined for??

Participants were examined four times during the study, with the team analyzing body mass index (BMI), heart disease, and troponin levels. This protein is released into the bloodstream during a heart attack. The presence of the protein indicates an increased risk of heart failure.

At which BMI people are overweight?

In addition to their weight measured during the study, the participants themselves reported their weight at the age of 25 years. The researchers were able to track BMI from young adulthood to late middle age. A BMI of more than 25 indicates that a person is overweight, and a BMI of more than 30 indicates obesity.

Obesity massively increased the troponin level

After monitoring the BMI along with the troponin level from the beginning to the end of the study, the physicians found that when the participants' BMI increased on the fourth visit to obesity or obesity, the subjects had a 1.5-fold higher troponin Levels (which was at least 14 nanograms per liter), indicating cardiac damage.

Years overweight a risk factor for heart disease

After considering other risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure, diabetes and kidney disease, the researchers also found that every ten years a person was overweight, the risk of a rise in troponin levels was increased by 1.25-fold. This suggests that the number of years with obesity or obesity is a risk factor for heart disease.

A healthy body weight protects the heart

The researchers emphasize that maintaining healthy weight throughout life is important in keeping the heart healthy and minimizing the risk of problems.

Further research is needed

Although there is some evidence that weight loss, even after decades of obesity or obesity, can help reduce existing troponin levels, which also appears to improve heart health, it is not clear how strong the heart is regenerates, explains study author Professor Chiadi Ndumele of Johns Hopkins University. How long the damage after years of obesity is, is not yet known and needs further research, so the conclusion of the expert. (As)