Being overweight could change the structure of teenage hearts, suggests a study



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Being overweight in adolescence could change the shape of the heart and the functioning of the organ, according to a study.

Following a study to determine whether a high body mass index (BMI) is associated with poor heart health in young adults, researchers believe that overweight can trigger high blood pressure and thicken the heart muscle. These effects, usually associated with the elderly, could pave the way for heart disease in adulthood.

The team analyzed data from nearly 14,000 healthy young people aged 17 to 21 in Bristol, UK, who participate in the Children of the 90s study and have been monitored since birth.

A high BMI was found to be associated with enlargement of the main chamber of the heart, left ventricle, as well as higher blood pressure.

 <img fetchpriority= Scientists believe to be overweight as a teenager could change the structure and function of the heart Getty Images ]

The thickening of the vessel walls is widely regarded as the first sign of atherosclerosis. The disease is characterized by the accumulation of fatty plaques in the arteries that can cause heart disease.

Kaitlin H. Wade, lead author of the study and associate researcher at the Integrative Epidemiology Unit of the Medical Research Council at the University of Bristol Medical School, UK, told Newsweek : "We do not want to cause unnecessary worry about the lasting damage that a higher BMI may have on the heart, our results support efforts to reduce BMI" in a normal health range from a young age to prevent the development of subsequent cardiovascular disease. "

The authors of the study acknowledged that their study was limited with respect to the general population of the United Kingdom and other countries because most participants in the longitudinal study were white and members of different ethnic groups have varying risks of heart disease.

Further study is needed to confirm whether a high BMI causes heart problems.

Next, researchers will investigate whether these findings can be replicated in a 70-year cohort and whether there is a correlation between a higher BMI and others

Ashleigh Doggett, a cardiology nurse at The charity of the British Heart Foundation Newsweek : "It is interesting to see that obesity can have an effect on heart health from the British Heart Foundation. 19659002] "It may be a common misconception that heart problems affect only an older population, which, we know, is not the case. This study underscores the importance of adopting a healthy lifestyle from an early age – the sooner we strengthen healthier habits, the greater the impact.

Last year, researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital present signs of organ damage in high blood pressure at levels below the clinical definition of the condition at young people.

Hypertension is defined according to percentiles in children, not the blood pressure level as in adults. 180 adolescents aged 14 to 17 years revealed organic lesions in young people with "normal" blood pressure at the 80th percentile.

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