HealthDuties

Metabolic Syndrome can usually be diagnosed using the following factors: waist circumference, triglyceride levels, decrease in HDL levels, blood pressure and/or fasting glucose level.

There are a handful of things you can do to manage Metabolic Syndrome:

• Aggressive lifestyle changes
• Medication to decrease blood pressure, cholesterol or lose weight.
• Aspirin therapy to decrease risk of heart attack and stroke.
• Increase in physical activity; exercising (e.g. 30 to 60 minutes brisk walking each day).
• Lose weight
• Quit smoking
• Healthy balanced diet including fiber-rich foods and having lots of fruits and vegetables. Eating white meat or fish not red meat. Do not have fast foods or deep-fried foods. Keep use of table salt to a minimum.

Metabolic Syndrome, or Syndrome X, is made up of a variety of signs and symptoms. The presence of one or more of which increases the patient’s risk of having a serious diseases like coronary heart disease, stroke, peripheral vascular disease or diabetes.

Some of the more common signs and symptoms of Metabolic Syndrome include: obesity, high blood pressure, abnormal lipid profile (low HDL levels, high triglycerides), inability of the body to use insulin or blood sugar properly (i.e. glucose intolerance or insulin resistance), high levels of C-reactive protein in the blood, elevated blood levels of fibrinogen or plasminogen activator inhibitor.

There are a handful of risk factors that could lead to Metabolic Syndrome:

• Obesity BMI25; abdominal obesity; apple shaped body
• Race (Asians and Hispanics in particular)
• Age
• Family history of diabetes or gestational diabetes
• Hormonal imbalance
• Physical inactivity