Being overweight may thicken heart muscle tissue and increase blood pressure, elevating one’s risk for future heart disease. In this study, researchers analyzed data on thousands of healthy young adults and found a link between a greater BMI and both higher blood pressure and enlargement of left ventricle of the heart. Lead author Dr. Kaitlin H. Wade explains, “Thickening of vessel walls is widely considered to be the first sign of atherosclerosis, a disease in which fatty plaques build up within the arteries and lead to heart disease. However, our findings suggest that higher BMIs cause changes in the heart structure of the young that may precede changes in blood vessels… Our results support efforts to reduce body mass index to within a normal, healthy range from a young age to prevent later heart disease.”
Circulation, July 2018