A new study revealed that the main cause of the most common type of heart failure is not in the heart itself, but in the visceral fat that surrounds the internal organs, and the chemical messages produced negatively affecting the health of the heart.
This discovery is a revolution in understanding the failure of the heart, as it highlights its biological roots, and paved the way for more accurate treatments that target the real cause, not just symptoms.
With the possibility of monitoring these chemical changes early, early diagnosis, a healthy lifestyle, and the provision of appropriate treatment for patients may give millions of people an opportunity to avoid this silent disease and its serious complications.
The study was conducted by researchers from the University of Baylor, Dallas, USA, and its results were published in the Jacc magazine (JACC), on August 31, and was written by the Yurrick Alert website.
It was previously believed that chronic diseases – high blood pressure – are the main driver of a common type of heart failure, which led to a major misunderstanding and a lack of guidance in the diagnostic and treatment stages.
It has been noted that most patients with cardiac insufficiency have a large amount of brutal fat surrounding organs, including the heart, but the way these fats caused the heart failure is not understood.
Dr. Milton Bakr, a researcher participating in this study, said: “Until now there has been a unified hypothesis that explains the occurrence of heart failure, which led to a great misunderstanding and a lack of guidance in both diagnosis and treatment. This new bold framework helps to determine the true cause of heart failure in most patients, which will cause a huge difference in directing effective treatments.”
How does visceral fat cause heart problems?
Paisive Ection Fraction (HFPEF) is the most common type of heart failure, affecting more than 32 million people around the world. In this type of palaces, the strength of the heart pumping is normal, but the heart rooms, especially the left ventricle, become solid and unable to stretch to receive the blood sufficiently, which leads to excessive fullness of the heart and increased internal pressure in it.
This results in shortness of breath when walking or making an effort, and it may cause swelling in the legs or abdomen and gathering fluids in the lungs, which is the intended type of study.
The function of the fatty tissue is not only a energy store, but rather an active tissue that secretes proteins and chemical compounds called adipokines, and it is a chemical messages that communicate with the body organs, including the heart.
Adebocaines play an important role, it protects the heart and kidneys, and helps reduce stress and inflammation, while maintaining the balance of sodium and fluids in the normal state.
But when there is an excess of visceral fats, the biology of fatty tissue turns, as it begins to produce and secrete a different group of adipokatins that increase infections, in addition to cardiac fibrosis and enlargement, which leads to heart failure.
The study indicates that the BMI (BMI Body Mass Index)- which is calculated by dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by a square in meter- is not the best way to know the risk of accumulating visceral fats, the most accurate method is the ratio of the waist circumference (centimeter) into length (centimeter).
The ratio should be less than 0.5 (that is, the circumference of your waist must be less than half of your height), if the result is higher than 0.5 (especially if it is 0.6 or more), this indicates the presence of a dangerous amount of visceral fat.
Research indicates that more than 95% of patients with cardiac failure have central obesity (i.e. high guts), which are closely related to the disease.
The study indicates that the targeting of visceral fats may be the key to understanding and treating heart failure, as it turns out that modern drugs such as semaglutide and Tirzepatide, known as obesity and diabetes, can help in the chemical balance in the body and reduce heart -related infections.
Obesity treatment surgeries have also proven effective in reducing visceral fats, which reflects positively on the health and function of the heart, and most importantly, chemical changes in the blood, such as the levels of acadepocaines, can be monitored years before the appearance of the disease, which paves the way for early diagnosis and prevention.