Lifestyle diseases, unlike other diseases, can be prevented by making minimal changes to your daily life. These are diseases caused by the way you lead your life on a daily basis. Lifestyle diseases include diabetes mellitus, high blood pressure, certain types of cancer, arteriosclerosis, heart disease and overweight/obesity.
Today, let’s learn more about the causes of lifestyle diseases:
Sedentary Lifestyle: If you want to save yourself from diabetes and heart diseases, it’s time you turned off that TV and moved around a bit. Research shows that people who are obese are more at the risk of developing high blood pressure and cholesterol leading to heart attack. In addition, obesity and diabetes are closely linked. Obese people are twice as likely to develop diabetes leading to blindness and, in some cases, death.
Smoking: You may believe that smoking actually relieves you from stress. However, have you thought of the long-term effects of smoking? Smoking is one of the major causes of lung cancer and cardiovascular diseases. It also increases your blood pressure, decreases good cholesterol in your blood and increases the risk of blood clot. Smokers with a family history of heart disease are more at risk.
Alcohol: With alcohol, moderation is always the key. Consuming too much alcohol can lead to high blood pressure. If your blood pressure goes beyond control, it is likely to damage your kidneys and liver. Alcohol also contains calories which in turn may lead to weigh gain/obesity and then a host of cardiovascular diseases.
Fast Food: Aah! A bite of that cheesy pizza, the crunchy fries, the juicy burgers make you feel like you are consuming the best food under the sun. But wait! Did you know that fast food like pizzas, fries, burgers are loaded with saturated fats and poor quality carbohydrates? This is sure to increase your cholesterol levels, clog your arteries and ultimately lead to a heart attack. In fact, researchers of the Medical Research Council Human Nutrition Center and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine say that eating fast food daily or even four times a day can make you gain weight and become obese.
Stress: In today’s busy schedules, most of us are almost always stressed. Stress not just affects you emotionally but has severe effects on your health too. Studies have shown that people who are stressed are at a higher risk of developing high blood pressure and heart conditions. When you are stressed you are likely to eat more unhealthy food, consume excessive alcohol which will in turn increase your blood sugar levels leading to diabetes. In addition, experts believe that people with demanding, high-stress jobs are more at the risk of developing depression and anxiety.
BDST: 1555 HRS, MAR-27, 2014
