Dr. Lam Author of
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Metabolic syndrome is a condition that significantly increases an individual’s risk to cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes. Even worse, a recent study shows that nearly one quarter of the American workforce has this syndrome.
Researchers studied health risk appraisal data from 5,512 employees of a larger financial service corporation. Results showed that 22.6% of employees had metabolic syndrome.
A person is diagnosed with metabolic syndrome if he/she has at least three of the five risk factors listed below.
- A waist circumference of 40 inches or more in men, 35 inches or more in women
- High triglyceride levels
- Reduced levels of good HDL-cholesterol
- High blood pressure
- High glucose levels
Employees with metabolic syndrome were more likely to rate their own health as poor compared with employees who did not have the condition. Also, they more likely to ask for time off due to illness compared to employees without the condition.
SOURCE: Burton WN, Chen CY, Schultz AB, Eddington DW. The Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome in an Employed Population and the Impact on Health and Productivity. Journal of Occupational & Environmental Medicine. 2008;50:1139-1148.
My Views
Two of the key factors that affect our health are glucose (also known as blood sugar) and the hormone insulin. Because of the high carbohydrate foods we as a whole population, now eat, our bodies' levels of glucose and insulin have gone out of control. Such high carbohydrate foods include cereals, muffins, breads and rolls, pastas, cookies, donuts, and soft drinks.
Quite simply, we are overdosing on glucose and insulin -- two substances which, in high doses, will accelerate the aging of our bodies and encourage the onset of diseases. Insulin resistance is the body's way to resist excessive sugar and carbohydrate levels, and 60 million Americans have this problem. When insulin resistance is accompanied by compensatory hyperinsulinemia- (not explained in article), the systemic damage is collectively known as Metabolic syndrome.
Fortunately, Metabolic Syndrome can be reversed with dietary, lifestyle, and nutritional supplements. Dr Reaven, the acknowledged father of this syndrome, advocates a diet high in unsaturated fat (45%), low in protein (15%), and moderate in carbohydrate (40%). Exercise, weight management, and optimum nutritional supplements such as chromium polynicotinate, vitamin C, proline, lysine, and other antioxidants help to normalize sugar and increase insulin sensitivity.
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