Japan Begins Compulsory Flab Check
Plans to curb the alarming rate of metabolic syndrome
Japan’s government has been so alarmed by the growing healthcare costs of expanding waistlines that starting next month everyone over the age of 40 will have to be tested for metabolic syndrome.  The new exams are part of a government effort to curb the spiraling medical costs—much of it attributed to the nation’s growing obesity epidemic. 

Elevated waist circumference
Greater than 35 inches for women and 40 inches for men.
For people genetically at greater risk of diabetes, the circumference limit is slightly lower; 31 to 35 inches for women and 37 to 39 inches for men.

Elevated level of triglycerides
150 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or higher.

Reduced HDL (good cholesterol)
Less than 40 mg/dL in men or less than 50 mg/dL in women.

Elevated blood pressure
130 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) systolic (the top number) or higher.
85 (mm Hg) diastolic (the bottom number) or higher.

Elevated fasting blood sugar (blood glucose)
100 mg/dL or higher.

Having one component of metabolic syndrome means you're more likely to have others. And the more components you have, the greater are the risks to your health. One study showed that men with three factors of metabolic syndrome are nearly twice as likely to have a heart attack or stroke and more than three times as likely to develop heart disease as are those with no factors.

where the cells use it as fuel. Glucose enters the cells with the help of insulin. In people with insulin resistance, cells don't respond to insulin and glucose can't enter the cells. Your body reacts by churning out more and more insulin to help glucose get into your cells. This results in higher than normal levels of insulin and glucose in the blood.

Although perhaps not high enough to qualify as diabetes, an elevated glucose level still interferes with your body processes. Increased insulin raises your triglyceride level and those of other blood fats. It also interferes with how your kidneys work, leading to increased blood pressure.

Damage to the lining of coronary and other arteries
A key step toward the development of heart disease or stroke

Changes in the kidneys' ability to remove salt
Leading to high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke

An increase in triglyceride levels
Resulting in an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease

An increased risk of blood clot formation
Which can block arteries and cause heart attacks and strokes

A slowing of insulin production
Which can signal the start of type 2 diabetes, a disease that can increase your risk for a heart attack or stroke and may damage your eyes, nerves or kidneys

Risk Factors for Metabolic Syndrome
The following factors increase your chances of having metabolic syndrome:

Age
The prevalence of metabolic syndrome increases with age, affecting less than 10 percent of people in their 20s and 40 percent of people in their 60s. However, one study shows that about one in eight schoolchildren have three or more components of metabolic syndrome.

Race
Hispanics and Asians seem to be at greater risk for metabolic syndrome than other races are.

Obesity
A body mass index (BMI)—a measure of your percentage of body fat based on height and weight—greater than 25 increases your risk of metabolic syndrome. So does abdominal obesity—having an apple shape rather than a pear shape.

History of diabetes
You're more likely to have metabolic syndrome if you have a family history of type 2 diabetes or a history of diabetes during pregnancy (gestational diabetes).

Other diseases
A diagnosis of high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease or polycystic ovary syndrome—a similar type of metabolic problem that affects a woman's hormones and reproductive system—also increases the risk of metabolic syndrome.

Treatment
Tackling one of the risk factors of metabolic syndrome is tough—taking on all of them might seem overwhelming. But lifestyle and diet changes can improve all of the metabolic syndrome components.

You can’t take a magic prescription to treat or reverse metabolic syndrome. Getting more physical activity, losing weight, and quitting smoking help reduce blood pressure and improve cholesterol and blood sugar levels. These changes are key to reducing your risk.

How Do You Prevent or Reverse Metabolic Syndrome?
Since physical inactivity and excess weight are the main underlying contributors to the development metabolic syndrome, getting more exercise and losing weight can help reduce or prevent the complications associated with this condition. Your doctor may also prescribe medications to manage some of your underlying problems. Some of the ways you can reduce your risk:

Dietary changes
Healthy eating habits that include reduced intake of saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol, and increase dietary fiber which can lower your insulin levels.

Recommendation
Dietary fiber is just one of the powerful and effective ingredients found in Bios Life. Experts agree that if you could take just one supplement to improve your health, you should be taking Bios Life. A glass of Bios Life 10 minutes before you eat can improve your cholesterol levels, lower your triglyceride and blood sugar levels—and is perhaps the most effective thing you can do to avoid cardiovascular disease, heart disease, and diabetes.

Lose weight
Moderate weight loss, in the range of 5 percent to 10 percent of body weight, can help restore your body's ability to recognize insulin and greatly reduce the chance that the syndrome will evolve into a more serious illness.

Recommendation
Unicity's Lean Control Nutritionals help you achieve noticeable weight management results and improve overall health, energy levels, and well-being. Our time-tested, simple and easy, three-step Cleanse Burn Build philosophy works in harmony with the body’s natural functions to achieve and maintain weight management goals. Look for more news coming soon about Unicity product advances in fat-loss and weight loss!

Exercise
Increased activity alone can improve your insulin levels. A brisk 30-minute walk a day can result in a weight loss, improved blood pressure, improved cholesterol levels and a reduced risk of developing diabetes.

Recommendation
Unicity has always recommended an active, healthy lifestyle.

What Recent Studies of Metabolic Syndrome Have Been Done?
Recently published studies have used different criteria for metabolic syndrome and followed subjects for varied lengths of time. Thus the magnitude of risk associated with the metabolic syndrome varies across the studies.

In a study of Japanese men without cardiovascular disease at baseline followed for seven years, the subsequent development of cardiovascular disease was correlated with the number of features of the metabolic syndrome at baseline. Those men with three or more features at baseline had more than twelve times the risk of developing cardiovascular disease than those with none.(1) Other studies have shown a relative risk of developing cardiovascular disease for those with three or more features compared to those with two or less of 1.3 to 1.7.(2-4) For individuals with diabetes the relative risk is higher with five times increased risk of cardiovascular disease for those with the metabolic syndrome and diabetes compared to those with diabetes without the metabolic syndrome.(5)

All cause mortality is increased by 20-80 percent in individuals with the metabolic syndrome with mortality from cardiovascular disease increased by 60-280 percent and death from coronary heart disease increased by 70-330 percent.(6-8)The presence of the metabolic syndrome confers an increased risk of death from coronary heart disease in women compared to men.(9)

Reference List

1. Nakanishi N, Takatorige T, Fukuda H, Shirai K, Li W, Okamoto M, et al. Components of the metabolic syndrome as predictors of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes in middle-aged Japanese men. Diabetes Res Clin Pract 2004 Apr;64(1):59-70.
2. Sattar N, Gaw A, Scherbakova O, Ford I, O'Reilly DS, Haffner SM, et al. Metabolic syndrome with and without C-reactive protein as a predictor of coronary heart disease and diabetes in the West of Scotland Coronary Prevention Study. Circulation 2003 Jul 29;108(4):414-9.
3. Girman CJ, Rhodes T, Mercuri M, Pyorala K, Kjekshus J, Pedersen TR, et al. The metabolic syndrome and risk of major coronary events in the Scandinavian Simvastatin Survival Study (4S) and the Air Force/Texas Coronary Atherosclerosis Prevention Study (AFCAPS/TexCAPS). Am J Cardiol 2004 Jan 15;93(2):136-41.
4. Ford ES. The metabolic syndrome and mortality from cardiovascular disease and all-causes: findings from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey II Mortality Study. Atherosclerosis 2004 Apr;173(2):309-14.
5. Bonora E, Targher G, Formentini G, Calcaterra F, Lombardi S, Marini F, et al. The Metabolic Syndrome is an independent predictor of cardiovascular disease in Type 2 diabetic subjects. Prospective data from the Verona Diabetes Complications Study. Diabet Med 2004 Jan;21(1):52-8.
6. Isomaa B, Almgren P, Tuomi T, Forsen B, Lahti K, Nissen M, et al. Cardiovascular morbidity and mortality associated with the metabolic syndrome. Diabetes Care 2001 Apr;24(4):683-9.
7. Lakka HM, Laaksonen DE, Lakka TA, Niskanen LK, Kumpusalo E, Tuomilehto J, et al. The metabolic syndrome and total and cardiovascular disease mortality in middle-aged men. JAMA 2002 Dec 4;288(21):2709-16.
8. Malik S, Wong ND, Franklin SS, Kamath TV, L'Italien GJ, Pio JR, et al. Impact of the metabolic syndrome on mortality from coronary heart disease, cardiovascular disease, and all causes in United States adults. Circulation 2004 Sep 7;110(10):1245-50.
9. McNeill AM, Rosamond WD, Girman CJ, Golden SH, Schmidt MI, East HE, et al. The metabolic syndrome and 11-year risk of incident cardiovascular disease in the atherosclerosis risk in communities study. Diabetes Care 2005 Feb;28(2):385-90.

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