Metabolic Dysfunction

Metabolic Dysfunction

Metabolic Dysfunction: Poor metabolic health is one of the most common conditions faced by individuals in the modern world. In the US recent estimates suggest that 88% of the US population is metabolically unhealthy (1). Metabolic health is not merely the absence of metabolic syndrome, a cluster of conditions that together raise your risk of cardiometabolic disease (Diabetes, heart disease, and stroke). Metabolic syndrome diagnosis criteria are the presence of three of the five conditions: 1. Having large waistline (>35 Females and <40in male) 2. High blood pressure, 3. High blood sugar, 4. High triglycerides, 5, low HDL.  

 

Metabolic health not only suggests that these five criteria are optimized without dependence of pharmaceutical intervention, but also implies that additional metabolic factors are normal, with a high level of overall health and low risk of cardiometabolic disease. In the United States only 12% of American’s classify as metabolically health (1)! This is alarming and important because poor metabolic health is a common cause for many or most of chronic lifestyle disease

 

Poor metabolic health, or metabolic syndrome is not a disease itself but rather the result of disturbance in underlying systems that balance metabolism. When you have metabolic dysfunction, your body produces too many certain hormones that regulate metabolism and energy use. The result is that you struggle with energy, appetite, and weight balance. 

 

What causes metabolic dysfunction? 

There are several causes of metabolic dysfunction, including but not limited to:

  • Nutrition:  Eating foods that are ultra-processed; are high in refined flour and sugar, low in protein, and contain industrial seed and vegetable oils; all of which instigate an inflammatory cascade after consumption, and disrupt hormones that balance stress, glucose disposal and satiety. 
  • Elevated Insulin and insulin resistance: Elevated insulin signals to the body that is needs to store energy food and inhibits actions of lipolysis (fat burning); elevate insulin encourages weight gain. Insulin resistance occurs when cells no long respond to the hormone insulin, therefore resisting the uptake of blood glucose. 
  • Sedentarism: Lack of regular movement or exercise. This not only reduces the amount of energy expended, but leads to reduced muscle challenge, which can lead to muscle loss, Muscle is a primary organ for glucose disposal, and insufficient muscle mass contributes to insulin resistance 

Impaired metabolic health can impact numerous aspects of the body’s functioning.

 It’s found to contribute to the following conditions: 

  • Prediabetes and Type 2 Diabetes
  • High Cholesterol
  • High Blood Pressure
  • Excess Weight and Weight loss resistance
  • Heart Disease and Stroke
  • Certain Cancers 
  • Dementia and neurodegenerative disease
  • PCOS, Endometriosis, and Infertility.

Common signs and symptoms include: 

  • Fatigue
  • Poor satiety
  • Muscle weakness or soreness, especially with exercise.
  • Weight gain and/or inability to lose weight
    • Especially around midsection or “apple” type body
  • Changes in skin tone 
  • Elevated blood pressure
  • Poor sleep 

 

Statistics 

Diabetes 

Diabetes (CDC)  

  • Total: 37.3 million people have diabetes (11.3% of the U.S. population)
  • Diagnosed: 28.7 million people, including 28.5 million adults
  • Undiagnosed: 8.5 million people (23.0% of adults are undiagnosed)

Prediabetes

  • Total: 96 million people aged 18 years or older have prediabetes (38.0% of the adult U.S. population)
  • 65 years or older: 26.4 million people aged 65 years or older (48.8%) have prediabetes

Hypertension (CDC)

  • Nearly half of adults in the United States (47%, or 116 million) have hypertension. 
  • Only about 1 in 4 adults (24%) with hypertension have their condition under control.
  • A greater percentage of men (50%) have a high blood pressure than women (44%). 

 

Why is treating the root cause of metabolic dysfunction important? 

Treating the root cause of metabolic dysfunction is essential because it improves the patient’s quality of life and reduces the risk for multiple chronic health conditions. An important research trial looking at drug intervention compared against lifestyle, demonstrated that lifestyle was twice as effective at decreasing diabetes than the top prescribed drug Metformin (2).  In addition to reduced incident of disease, those treated with lifestyle are found to have an increase in their quality-of-life scores, compared to those treated my pharmaceuticals. 

The good news is that metabolic dysfunction can be reversed with the right diet, exercise routine, and lifestyle changes. That’s where Benehealth comes in: we’ll help you figure out what’s wrong with your metabolism so you can start feeling great again. In terms of your general health, your heart is crucial. Receive a tailored treatment plan from Benehealth to control symptoms such as high blood pressure and prevent future diseases such as diabetes and stroke. 

 

REFEERENCES

  1. Araújo J, Cai J, Stevens J. Prevalence of Optimal Metabolic Health in American Adults: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2009-2016. Metab Syndr Relat Disord. 2019 Feb;17(1):46-52. doi: 10.1089/met.2018.0105. Epub 2018 Nov 27. PMID: 30484738.

 

  1. The Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) Research Group; The Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP): Description of lifestyle intervention. Diabetes Care 1 December 2002; 25 (12): 2165–2171. https://doi.org/10.2337/diacare.25.12.2165
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