How to Accurately Predict Your Heart Attack Risk
A new study indicates that hip-to-waist ratio may be a better
predictor of heart attack risk than body-mass index, which is
the current standard.
BMI Ignores Muscle Mass
The body-mass index, which is based on weight and height, does
not measure where fat is on the body or how muscular a person
might be. Athletes and completely out-of-shape people can have
similar BMI scores. Previous research has demonstrated that a
potbelly is a better predictor of heart trouble than total
weight.
27,000-Person Study
The new study draws on information collected from over 27,000
people in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, including more
than 12,000 who had undergone a heart attack.
The risk of heart attack rose as waist size grew in proportion
to hip circumference. The 20 percent of the survey with the
highest waist-to-hip size ratio were2.5 times more likely to
have heart attacks than the 20 percent with the lowest ratio.
Two-Part Strategy
The finding suggests a two-part strategy: trimming the abdomen,
and possibly also increasing hip size by increasing muscle mass.
Larger hips might be a marker of overall muscle mass.
USA Today November 3, 2005
Dr. Mercola's Comment:Three years ago, I ran an article about
waist-to-hip measurements as well as body-mass index (BMI) being
used as an indicator, not only of obesity, but of thickening
carotid arteries.This new study now argues waist-to-hip
measurements may better predict the risk of heart attack among
different ethnic groups than BMI.
The suggested strategy of trimming your abdominal fat while
building your muscle mass makes plenty ofsense.In other words,
atwo-prongedapproach in which diet and exercise are equally
importantmakes perfect sense.
On the diet side, the best way to get started is to begin
retooling your eating habits based on your body's unique
metabolic type.
Just as food is fuel for your body, gas is food for your car. It
would seem reasonable to believe that your car is going to
thrive on high-quality gas once you put it in your tank. But
what if you were driving a diesel-powered vehicle? If that were
the case, in a few minutes your car would have serious problems
or stop running, and you would have a very expensive repair job
ahead of you.
Just like your car, your body was designed for a certain
correctfuel mixture -- that is, a certain correct blend of the
right food types. The further you deviate from this ideal, the
more health problems are likely. That is why some of the sickest
people I see in my practice are those who are "designed" to be
eating high-protein foods but have decided to be vegetarians.
Conversely, carb types who choose to eat high amounts of meats
also don't do very well.
If this concept of metabolic typingintrigues you I would
encourage you totake my free test that will help you determine
the best foods for you.
As far as exercise, you'll get the most out of it if you treat
it like a drug that must be precisely prescribed for you to
achieve the maximum benefits. A daily exercise routine is one of
the main factors in achieving optimal health.
The key to exercising effectively is to make sure the variables
below are properly addressed. By doing so, you will ensure all
your hard efforts are not wasted and are having a positive
effect on your body. To aid you in your exercise efforts, there
are three important variables to keep in mind:- Length of
time
- Frequency
- Intensity
I encourage my patients to gradually increase the amount of time
they are exercising to 60 to 90 minutes a day. Initially the
frequency is daily; this is a treatment dose until you
normalizeyour weight or insulin levels. Once normalized, you
will only need to exercise three to four times a week.
You should exercise hard enough so that it is difficult to talk
to someone next to you. However, if you cannot carry on a
conversation AT ALL, then you have gone too far and need to
decrease the intensity. Once you have started to burn fat
effectively you can switch to more interesting exercise
variations likeDr. Al Sears' PACE program.
Thisis a combination of bothendurance exerciseand anaerobic
typesprinting exercises (weight training will also work) to help
increase the instant dramatic demands on your cardiovascular
system that can precipitate heart attacks,such asin the winter
when you might be shoveling snow.
Dr. Sears has quite a comprehensive program, and I would
strongly encourage you to consider reviewing it. I do plan on
doing a more comprehensive review on the PACE program sometime
in the future.
I've devoted many pages on my Web site to the wonderful benefits
exercise will do for your health. If you need some direction to
get started, I urge you to review my beginner's exercise page
that includes links to other pages and a free table you can
download to keep track of your progress.