What Happens to Your Heart When Obesity Takes Hold?
Obesity can influence blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and inflammation, which play an important role in cardiovascular health. Over time, these changes can place additional stress on the heart and blood vessels and increase the risk of heart disease.
Understanding the connection between obesity and heart disease can help improve several of the risk factors that affect cardiovascular health. For individuals who meet the appropriate medical criteria, bariatric surgery can provide a powerful approach to significant and sustained weight loss.
At NObesity, our bariatric surgeon assesses your overall health and helps determine whether bariatric surgery is an appropriate option for you. From surgical care and personalised nutrition to lifestyle guidance, medical support and long-term follow-up, our comprehensive approach is designed to help you manage obesity and work toward better long-term health.
At NObesity, we bring together specialist care, evidence-based treatment and ongoing support to help people address obesity as a long-term health concern—not simply a number on the scale.
Our approach considers your health history, weight-related concerns, lifestyle and treatment goals to help determine an appropriate treatment pathway, which may include medical weight management, medications, nutrition and lifestyle support, or bariatric surgery.
For people concerned about obesity and heart disease, addressing weight can form an important part of a broader approach to improving overall health.
A Specialist Approach to Treating Obesity
At NObesity, we bring together specialist care, evidence-based treatment and ongoing support to help people address obesity as a long-term health concern—not simply a number on the scale.
Our approach considers your health history, weight-related concerns, lifestyle and treatment goals to help determine an appropriate treatment pathway, which may include medical weight management, medications, nutrition and lifestyle support, or bariatric surgery.
For people concerned about obesity and heart disease, addressing weight can form an important part of a broader approach to improving overall health.
FAQs
How does obesity cause heart disease?
Obesity can contribute to heart disease through several interconnected factors. Excess weight can increase blood pressure, affect cholesterol levels, promote insulin resistance, and contribute to chronic inflammation. Together, these changes can damage blood vessels and increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Can obesity increase the risk of a heart attack?
Yes. Obesity can increase several risk factors associated with heart attack, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes. This means the relationship between obesity and heart attack risk is important to understand, particularly when excess weight is accompanied by other cardiovascular risk factors.
Can losing weight reduce the risk of heart disease?
Weight loss can help improve several factors associated with cardiovascular health, including blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels. For people living with obesity, achieving and maintaining meaningful weight loss may therefore help reduce certain obesity-related health risks.
Can bariatric surgery help with obesity-related heart risks?
For eligible individuals, bariatric surgery can result in significant and sustained weight loss and may improve several obesity-related conditions and cardiovascular risk factors. Whether surgery is appropriate depends on factors such as BMI, overall health, medical history, and previous weight-loss efforts.
Is bariatric surgery an option if I have obesity and heart disease?
Having obesity and heart disease does not automatically mean that bariatric surgery is suitable or unsuitable. Your overall health, cardiovascular condition, BMI, medical history, and surgical risk need to be evaluated by a qualified specialist before a treatment decision is made.
Can I get insurance coverage for bariatric surgery if I have heart disease?
Yes, bariatric surgery may be covered if your insurance policy includes the procedure and you meet the required medical criteria.
You are 18 years or older.
Your BMI is 40 kg/m² or higher.
Your BMI is 35 kg/m² or higher, and you have a severe obesity-related condition such as obesity-related heart disease.
The heart condition must be medically documented, and other requirements may apply, including medical advice for surgery and failure of less-invasive weight-loss methods. Cashless treatment also depends on your insurer's policy terms, network hospital availability, and prior authorisation.
