[Effect of healthy life style in overweight and obese patients]

Obesity is an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Change of life style plays very important role for the management of overweight and obesity and related cardiovascular risk factors. Patients need to acquire and adopt these changes. The aim of this study was to screen practices for overweight and obese patients, to decrease their cardiovascular risk and prevent development of cardiovascular diseases. 2489 overweight patients were screened from 29 general practices since April of 2001. The authors surveyed their characteristics of life style: eating and exercise habits, body mass index, waist line, resting blood pressure, heart rate and plasma glucose, total cholesterin, triglyceride, HDL after a 12-hour fasting. A team, which consisted of an internist, a dietician and a physical instructor dealt with the patients. After ruling out secondary obesity the team tailored an individual life-style which focused on dietary interventions (low calorie diet) and increased physical activity. 12 months later the body mass index decreased significantly by 0.56 kg/m 2 on average and further 0.088 kg/m 2 by the end of the second year, the waist line first did not change significantly then decreased 0.04 cm. The rest systolic blood pressure cut down significantly on average 5.9 Hg mm in the first year, and more 0.11 Hg mm by the end of second year. The metabolic parameters also decreased significantly: total cholesterin 0.23 mmol/l in the first year, 0.07 mmol/l in the second year, triglyceride: 0.18 mmol/l; 0.08 mmol/l, blood glucose: 0.15 mmol/l; 0.19 mmol/l. The level of HDL did not change. It is very important for management of overweight and obesity that patients adopt changes of life style. The authors' results show that these patients must be followed very strictly.