I am currently part way through a qualification in weight management for people suffering from obesity and diabetes. One of the statistics that sort of surprised me (and sort of didn’t) was that it is estimated that 25% of the WORLD’S population has Metabolic Syndrome (Syndome X). This rises to 35% in the USA. 

Metabolic Syndrome is a combination of central adiposity plus two of: raised triglycerides; high blood pressure; high blood glucose; and/or low HDL. Metabolic Syndrome increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke. It seems from the article in the Guardian that a huge number of the world’s population is headed toward an early end. I hope we have the facilities to cope. In my view and in my experience, a primal diet reduces all of the indicators for Metabolic Syndrome, most obviously central adiposity.

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/jul/07/heart-disease-plus-diabetes-can-knock-more-than-a-decade-off-your-life

“A combination of heart disease and diabetes can shorten your life by more than a decade, research has shown. Scientists came to the conclusion after analysing data on more than 135,000 deaths among more than a million study participants. They calculated the life expectancy reductions associated with a history of cardiometabolic diseases combining diabetes, strokes and heart attacks.
The lead researcher, Dr Emanuele Di Angelantonio, from Cambridge University, said: “We showed that having a combination of diabetes and heart disease is associated with a substantially lower life expectancy.

“An individual in their 60s who has both conditions has an average reduction in life expectancy of about 15 years.

Men of 60 with any two of the cardiometabolic conditions studied lost 12 years of life on average. The lifespan of those with all three conditions was reduced by 14 years. For women aged 60, the corresponding estimates were 13 years and 16 years of reduced life expectancy. The effects were even more dramatic at younger ages. Men of 40 with all three conditions could expect to have their life cut short by 23 years and women by 20 years.

Prof Jeremy Pearson, associate medical director at the British Heart Foundation, which part-funded the research, said: “The results of this large study emphasise the importance of preventing diabetes, heart attacks and strokes in the first place, through encouraging patients to live a healthier lifestyle and, where necessary, treating them with medication. “Once someone has developed diabetes, or suffered a stroke or heart attack, it is even more essential to address all their risk factors, such as their diet and the amount of physical activity they do, to lower their risk of a subsequent heart attack or stroke and give them the best chance of a longer life.

“Everyone should be aware of their risk of developing any of these conditions, and how they can reduce it. If you wait until you have developed one of these conditions before thinking about your wider health, you will already have reduced your life expectancy.”