A BMI of 24 or less is considered healthy, 25-29 makes a person overweight and 30 or over counts as obese. Normal-weight adults with heart disease had a life expectancy of 78, those who were overweight died at a median age of 77 and the most obese died at 74, they told a meeting of the American Heart Association. And the heavier the patient, the more likely it was that he or she had high blood pressure, diabetes, high blood cholesterol and a family history of heart disease. Eisenstein said in a statement. Cholesterol Many Americans today are faced with the reality of heart disease due to atherosclerosis, or the build up of plaque that clogs arteries.
Atherosclerosis is a result of long-term high blood cholesterol levels.
Scavenger cells on the inside of the artery pick up this cholesterol, combine it with calcium and plaque develops. This build up is generally referred to as the hardening of the arteries . 1 Cholesterol is a compound used by the body to make other important and essential compounds, including vitamin D, and the sex hormones testosterone and progesterone. It is also an important component in cell membranes. Finally, cholesterol is used to synthesize bile acids, which are necessary for fat digestion.