How Does Losing Weight Affect Health?

Feeling Better

Most people decide to lose weight to improve their appearance. They're tired of fat jokes and discrimination. They want to look better and feel more attractive. Weight loss does increase a person's self-esteem, but it also affects health in many positive ways. Losing weight doesn't just make you look better; it makes you feel better, avoid disease, have more energy and live longer so you can be there for your loved ones.

Metabolic Syndrome, Heart Health, Stroke Risk and Diabetes

Metabolic syndrome is a group of risk factors for developing heart disease and diabetes related to being overweight. You could have metabolic syndrome if you have three or more risk factors. Risk factors include having a large waist, measuring 35 inches or more for women and 40 inches or more for men, high blood pressure, high "bad" cholesterol or low "good" cholesterol or high fasting blood sugar of 100 mg/dL or higher. Losing weight can prevent metabolic syndrome. If you already have it, you can delay or prevent complications by losing weight.

Losing weight lowers your cholesterol and blood pressure, decreasing your chances of developing heart problems or having a stroke. Women who lose 10 to 20 pounds decrease the risk of having a heart attack, and men who lose weight are less likely to develop heart disease. Body fat, especially in the belly area, can cause inflammation that increases the risk of heart disease and stroke. Losing weight can reduce inflammation in your blood vessels and improve blood flow.

Type 2 diabetes has reached epidemic proportions in the United States, and more than 85 percent of the people who have it are overweight. One of the top killers in the U.S., diabetes causes heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, poor circulation, blindness and amputation. Being overweight makes your body resistant to the insulin that breaks down blood sugar. Women who lose 10 to 20 pounds cut their risk of developing type 2 diabetes in half. Losing 5 to 7 percent of your body weight and exercising a half hour a day for 5 days a week can prevent type 2 diabetes. If you already have type 2 diabetes, losing weight helps you keep blood sugar levels under control and can reduce the amount of medicine you have to take, reducing the side effects caused by the medication.

Losing Weight to Eliminate Other Health Risks

Losing weight can positively affect your health in a number of other ways. It can prevent gall bladder disease if you lose about 1/2 to 2 pounds a week and fatty liver disease by reducing the buildup of fat in your liver. You can avoid the risk of pregnancy complications such as diabetes and high blood pressure during pregnancy and the need for cesarean delivery. Babies of overweight mothers are more likely to be stillborn, premature and larger than normal and have defects of the spinal cord and brain. Weight loss can improve sleep apnea, a condition that causes a person to stop breathing or breathe irregularly during deep sleep. Losing weight can decrease the neck size of a person with sleep apnea and lessen inflammation. If you lose 5 percent of your body weight, you can decrease stress on your joints to improve symptoms of osteoarthritis. You can avoid complications during surgery and respiratory problems that overweight people suffer from. Losing weight improves your health in so many ways that you're sure to live a longer, more fulfilling life.