Metabolic syndrome is a group of five pathological conditions that can lead to heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and other serious health problems. Metabolic syndrome is diagnosed when a patient has three or more of the following risk factors:
high blood glucose;
low HDL (“good” cholesterol);
high triglyceride levels;
large waist circumference or “apple” body type;
high blood pressure.
Each of these risk factors alone increases the likelihood of developing cardiovascular disease. When a person has three or more of them, metabolic syndrome is diagnosed. This, in turn, makes this likelihood even higher. For example, high blood pressure is an important risk factor for heart and vascular disease, but when combined with high blood sugar and abdominal obesity (a large amount of fat on the belly), this risk increases several times more.
Metabolic syndrome in women
While the individual components that define metabolic syndrome are the same in women and men, there are some differences in how they manifest and influence the risk of developing cardiovascular disease:
Extreme obesity is more common in women than in men, and an increase in waist circumference increases the risk of developing metabolic syndrome to a greater extent.
Dyslipidemia (abnormal levels of fats in the blood) is associated with a higher risk of coronary heart disease in women.
Hypertension in women more often leads to the development of congestive heart failure.Women are more likely to have elevated glucose levels after a carbohydrate load than on an empty stomach. In men, the opposite is true.
In addition, women have unique risk factors for developing metabolic syndrome, which include:
Pregnancy-related weight gain
Use of hormonal contraceptives
Polycystic ovary syndrome
Gestational diabetes
Preeclampsia
Menopause.
Understanding the characteristics of metabolic syndrome in women helps doctors choose the most effective prevention and treatment strategies.
Metabolic syndrome in men
Men also have some characteristics of the course of metabolic syndrome. These include:
Higher levels of triglycerides and lower levels of “good” cholesterol, compared to women.
Men with metabolic syndrome are more likely to have high blood pressure, as well as insulin resistance.
Metabolic syndrome in men can lead to erectile dysfunction (difficulty achieving or maintaining an erection).
Low testosterone levels due to metabolic disorders cause symptoms in male patients such as: decreased muscle mass and bone density, decreased libido, depression, night sweats.
Causes of Metabolic Syndrome
To understand the causes of the disease, you need to know what the word “metabolic” means. Metabolism, in simple terms, is the exchange of substances, the process of generating energy from the food that a person consumes. Accordingly, metabolic syndrome is a complex of symptoms associated with metabolic disorders.
The exact causes of its development are still unclear. However, known risk factors include: family history, poor diet, and insufficient physical activity. Two mechanisms that have led to the global spread of metabolic syndrome are the increased availability and consumption of fast food with high calorie and low fiber content, as well as decreased physical activity caused by a sedentary lifestyle.
Contributing factors include:
insulin resistance;
dysfunction of the beta cells of the pancreas, which produce insulin;
chronic inflammation in the body;
circadian rhythm disorder, increased stress;
intestinal microbiota imbalance.
Understanding risk factors helps to adjust the patient’s lifestyle to avoid the development of diseases associated with metabolic disorders. Symptoms of Metabolic Syndrome
Clinical manifestations of metabolic syndrome are:
Hypertension (high blood pressure);
Hyperglycemia (high blood sugar);
Hypertriglyceridemia (high triglyceride levels);
Low levels of “good cholesterol” (high-density lipoprotein);
Abdominal obesity (large amounts of fat in the belly);
Chest pain or shortness of breath;
Acanthosis nigricans (hyperpigmentation of skin folds), hirsutism (excessive hair growth on the body), peripheral neuropathy, and retinopathy in patients with insulin resistance, hyperglycemia, or diabetes;
Xanthelasma (yellowish plaques around the eyes) in patients with severe dyslipidemia.
The risk of developing metabolic syndrome increases with age – 40% of people over 60 suffer from it. However, it can also affect children: some studies suggest that 1 in 8 schoolchildren have 3 or more components of the syndrome.
Stem cell therapy:
The result of the therapy is an improvement in the quality of the pancreas, liver, intestines and other organs and systems of the body, improved metabolism, normalization of blood glucose levels and a beneficial effect on the entire body.
A significant improvement in the condition and progress in the treatment of concomitant diseases (such as high blood pressure, high blood glucose levels) is noted within a few weeks after the procedure. According to the data obtained after treatment, the main symptoms of the disease decrease after 2-3 months. The immune system is restored within a year.
The duration of the effect depends on many factors (including age, the presence of concomitant diseases), as well as on the accuracy of following the doctor’s recommendations. Compliance with a special regimen may include limited physical activity, exclusion of toxic products from the diet, limiting exposure to too high and low temperatures (a ban on visiting the sauna for a certain period of time).
In addition to the usual mesenchymal cells that affect the overall state of metabolism in the body, we also use stem B cells to improve the functioning of the pancreas, normalize sugar and insulin levels.
We also use neural stem cells that regulate appetite. The created model based on the obtained cells helps to influence the neurophysiology of weight control and in testing new methods of treating obesity. These neurons help regulate behavioral and basic physiological functions in the human body, including appetite, hypertension, sleep, mood, and some disorders in social behavior. Stem cells are carefully combined with growth factors that help differentiate into neurons of the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus, which regulate appetite and hunger.
Bioidentical pellets are also successfully used in complex therapy; they regulate metabolic and hormonal processes in the body, regulate hunger, fat absorption, gland sensitivity to food, and increase the level of energy expenditure, which leads to weight loss.