A good, healthy metabolism supplies every single cell in the body with everything it needs. This includes energy sources, building materials and auxiliary substances such as vitamins, hormones and enzymes. The metabolism also transports toxins and waste products out of the body.
However, if our metabolism falters, this can have a variety of effects. Possible indications of metabolic disorders can be, for example, obesity, lack of energy, moodiness, concentration problems, digestive problems or a weakening immune system.
The metabolic syndrome
The metabolic syndrome (also known as "affluence syndrome") summarises four different risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Hence the term "deadly quartet". Few people are aware of metabolic syndrome, although millions suffer from it.
Metabolic syndrome is the result of a long-term, unhealthy lifestyle and the resulting excess weight. This can have serious consequences. It is a bundle of symptoms - high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity - that together increase the risk of serious diseases such as coronary heart disease and stroke. While all three are necessary to confirm a diagnosis of metabolic syndrome, any one symptom can also put you at risk.
The cause is our modern lifestyle
Metabolic syndrome is a disease of affluence caused by eating too much and exercising too little. Overweight with a lot of belly fat usually leads to pathological changes in fat and carbohydrate metabolism. The important hormone insulin ensures that fats and sugars are metabolised. If our body cells become insensitive (resistant) to insulin, the blood sugar level can no longer fall properly. At the same time, blood lipid levels rise, as does blood pressure, as insulin also causes water and sodium (table salt) to accumulate in the kidneys. This disrupts the fluid balance in the vascular system.
Over time, deposits, known as plaques, can form in the vessels. Blood can no longer flow unhindered at such constrictions and extremities and, in the worst case, vital organs such as the heart, brain or kidneys are no longer adequately supplied with blood.
Consequences of metabolic syndrome
Possible consequences of metabolic syndrome are diabetes and arteriosclerosis. These diseases can lead to coronary heart disease with heart attacks and heart failure. They also increase the risk of circulatory disorders in the brain, including strokes. All the consequences develop gradually over many years. In most cases, symptoms only occur when the blood vessels have narrowed considerably due to arteriosclerosis, i.e. more than 70 per cent of the normal flow path is blocked.
The threshold for permanent organ damage is usually low. It is therefore important, Recognise risk factors and start treatment long before the first symptoms appear.
Sources:
https://www.lavita.de/wissen-gesundheit/stoffwechsel
https://www.gesundheitsliebe.de/ernaehrung/vierfach-gefaehrlich-das-metabolische-syndrom/
https://infothek-gesundheit.de/metabolisches-syndrom/
https://www.internisten-im-netz.de/krankheiten/metabolisches-syndrom/symptome-auswirkungen/
