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How Being Underweight or Overweight Can Endanger Your Heart
At Irving Coppell Primary Care and Pediatrics in Irving, Texas, family physician Dr. Vijayalakshmi Raghu, pediatrician Dr. Raghu Turebylu, and our experienced team specialize in managing chronic conditions and improving overall health, including personalized care to help you achieve and maintain a healthy weight.
Here’s what you should know about the risks of weight extremes on your heart and how to find balance.
The risks of being overweight
Carrying excess weight places stress on your heart and blood vessels and can trigger or exacerbate chronic diseases. Specific risks include:
High blood pressure (hypertension)
Being overweight forces your heart to pump harder, raising blood pressure. If left uncontrolled, this can lead to heart attacks or strokes.
Elevated cholesterol
Excess weight can increase LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and lower HDL (“good”) cholesterol levels, contributing to plaque buildup in your arteries.
Type 2 diabetes link
An unhealthy diet paired with excess weight heightens your risk of Type 2 diabetes, a condition that worsens heart health.
Heart stress and failure
Over time, the pressure on your heart from excess weight can enlarge it and reduce its effectiveness, potentially leading to heart failure.
The risks of being underweight
While the dangers of being overweight tend to dominate health conversations, being underweight can also harm your heart health. Risks include:
Nutrient deficiencies
A low body mass index (BMI) often indicates insufficient intake of vital nutrients like iron and protein. Without these nutrients, your heart muscle becomes weaker and less efficient.
Weak immune system
Poor nutrition undermines your immune defenses, making your body more prone to infections that can strain the cardiovascular system indirectly.
Electrolyte imbalances and arrhythmia
Extreme underweight conditions can disturb your body’s electrolyte levels, leading to an irregular heartbeat, which can become a severe health issue.
Bone health complications
Fragile bones due to nutritional deficiencies can lead to immobility after falls. This state increases the risk of cardiovascular complications like blood clots.
How to balance weight and health
Balancing your weight is crucial for maintaining a healthy heart. Here are some practical tips to get started:
Get professional help
At Irving Coppell Primary Care and Pediatrics, Drs. Turebylu and Raghu can help identify underlying issues affecting your weight. We personalize care plans according to your body’s unique needs.
Eat a balanced diet
Eat lean proteins, healthy fats, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables while minimizing highly processed and sugary foods. The American Heart Association recommends Mediterranean-style diets for heart health.
Move more
Strengthen your heart and circulatory system with 150 minutes of aerobic exercise weekly. Mix it up with strength training sessions to maintain muscle mass and metabolism, and include stretching to boost flexibility.
Sleep more and stress less
Chronic stress negatively affects your heart and often leads to unhealthy eating habits. Try stress-relief techniques such as yoga or deep breathing exercises, and get 7-9 hours of daily restful sleep — poor sleep increases your risk of weight gain, hypertension, and heart disease.
Take charge of your health — call or click to schedule a visit at Irving Coppell Primary Care and Pediatrics today. Whether you’re struggling to lose weight or gain it, our dedicated team in Irving, Texas, is ready to help you lead a heart-healthy life.
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