{"id":59245,"date":"2025-04-29T04:20:09","date_gmt":"2025-04-29T04:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/59245\/"},"modified":"2025-04-29T04:20:09","modified_gmt":"2025-04-29T04:20:09","slug":"healthy-looking-teens-may-be-at-risk-of-heart-disease-due-to-danger-of-popular-foods-and-drinks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/59245\/","title":{"rendered":"Healthy-looking teens \u2018may be at risk of heart disease\u2019 due to danger of popular foods and drinks"},"content":{"rendered":"

HEART damage may start in your teens, according to a study that links high blood sugar in youth to heart enlargement by age 24.<\/p>\n

An enlarged heart is typically not a medical emergency but can lead to problems later in life.<\/p>\n

\"Girl<\/a><\/p>\n

1<\/p>\n

Eating or drinking too much sugar could start to damage your body at a young age (stock)Credit: Getty<\/p>\n

It may cause an arrhythmia \u2013 where the heart beats too fast or too slow \u2013 in turn raising the risk of heart failure or cardiac arrest<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Research involving the University of Bristol<\/a> found that 17-year-olds with high levels of sugar in their blood were up to three times more likely to develop left ventricular hypertrophy.<\/p>\n

This is a condition where the heart chamber that pushes oxygen-rich blood out into the body \u2013 the left ventricle \u2013 is swollen above its normal size.<\/p>\n

The risk was 46 per cent higher even for people whose blood sugar was raised but below the UK\u2019s diabetes<\/a> warning threshold.<\/p>\n

Read more on heart diseases<\/p>\n

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Even healthy-looking teens and young adults may be at risk<\/p>\n

Professor Andrew AgbajeUniversity of Eastern Finland<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Young people\u2019s danger may be increasing because of the rise in processed foods<\/a> and drinks that are high in sugar.<\/p>\n

Senior study author, Professor Andrew Agbaje, from the University of Eastern Finland, said: \u201cStudies indicate that late adolescence<\/a> is a critical period in the development of cardiometabolic diseases.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur current findings confirm that even healthy-looking teens and young adults, who are mostly normal weight, may be at risk of cardiovascular diseases<\/a> if they have high blood sugar and insulin resistance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSurprisingly, we saw that high blood sugar may impact females\u2019 hearts faster than males.\u201d<\/p>\n

The research, in the journal Diabetes Care, used data from 1,595 young adults from the Bristol area who have been tracked since birth.<\/p>\n

Past studies have also found blood sugar levels in youth can predict whether someone will get type 2 diabetes later in their life.<\/p>\n

WHAT IS HIGH BLOOD SUGAR?<\/p>\n

SUGAR is released into the blood by digestion and comes from the food you eat.<\/p>\n

If you eat healthily, the body produces insulin that helps the body to process the sugar \u2013 mainly glucose \u2013 and use it for energy to power cells, muscles and organs.<\/p>\n

If you eat too much sugar or carbohydrate, the body may be unable to use it all and leave some circulating in the blood.<\/p>\n

This is not a problem for short periods but if blood sugar levels are raised over the long-term, they can cause physical damage to the insides of the blood vessels, nerves, eyes and organs.<\/p>\n

This may lead to chronic illnesses such as heart disease, sight loss or blindness, numbness in the feet which may result in amputation, and kidney problems.<\/p>\n

People with diabetes are most at risk of high blood sugar as their body cannot process it properly.<\/p>\n

Symptoms of high blood sugar include:<\/p>\n