Obesity and your heart: The risk you can’t afford to ignore

If statistics are to be believed, the most powerful contributor behind heart ailments is obesity. This is the reason that obesity is now being considered as an epidemic. The cause is not just what you see on the outside, but it lies much deeper - how the excess body fat puts extra pressure in your heart, without even showing signs in the first place.

(Dr. Arush Sabharwal, Bariatric and Metabolic Surgeon at SCOD (Surgical Centre for Obesity and Diabetes) Clinic)​

Obesity is not just the extra body weight you carry, it is a complex state of the body wherein each organ system functioning gets affected. Obese individuals heart find it harder to pump blood throughout the body and this extra load may tend to raise the blood pressure too (hypertension). Hypertension is one of the earliest signs that your body shows when the heart is in strain.
With increasing time, hypertension becomes damaging for the arteries, sometimes causing plaque buildup too (atherosclerosis). This leads to the narrowing of blood vessels and thus, higher chance of stroke. Also, obesity changes the body’s lipid profile by raising the levels of bad cholesterol i.e. LDL and lowering the good cholesterol (HDL).

Obesity is also strongly linked to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, both of which are major risk factors for heart disease. Excess fat, especially visceral fat around your organs, triggers chronic inflammation—a silent attacker that weakens blood vessels and heart muscle over time.
Obese individuals also develop certain conditions such as sleep apnea, which reduce the supply of oxygen during sleep, putting extra strain on the heart.

You don’t need to be morbidly obese to be at risk. Even being overweight can increase your chances of heart disease. A waist circumference over 40 inches in men and 35 inches in women is considered a red flag for cardiovascular risk.
Unfortunately, many people may have normal blood sugar and cholesterol levels but still suffer from “metabolically unhealthy obesity,” where fat distribution and inflammation silently put pressure on the heart.

The good news is that even modest weight loss—just 5–10% of your total body weight—can significantly reduce blood pressure, improve cholesterol, and lower your risk of heart disease.
Here’s how to start -
Focus on a heart healthy diet such as one inclusive of whole grains, millets, fruits, vegetables, healthy fats etc.
Try to be engaged in physical activity of any form for at least 150 minutes a week.
Aim for 7-8 hours of quality sleep a night to reduce the risk on the heart.
Regular monitoring via health check ups is important.

Your heart may stay quiet, but it may be crying on the inside due to the pressure it faces. If you try to manage your lifestyle with small and consistent steps, you can definitely deal with cardiovascular diseases. Be proactive for your heart health and it will thank you!