on PinterestCardiovascular and metabolic health are intrinsically linked, with diabetes and kidney disease as major risk factors for heart disease. PER Images/StocksyA new report suggests that millions of U.S.
on PinterestCardiovascular and metabolic health are intrinsically linked, with diabetes and kidney disease as major risk factors for heart disease. PER Images/Stocksy
- A new report suggests that millions of U.S. adults are unaware they may have undiagnosed cardiovascular risk factors that begin outside the heart.
- An estimated 90% of Americans may have a cluster of chronic health conditions known as cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) syndrome, which can lead to cardiovascular disease.
- A cardiologist explains the comorbidities of heart disease, diabetes, and kidney disease, and what you can do to protect your heart health.
When most people think of risk factors for cardiovascular disease, they likely consider their heart health.
Yet cardiovascular risks are also driven by other physiological processes that begin outside of the heart.
Metabolic health and cardiovascular health are intrinsically linked, with diabetes and kidney disease as significant risk factors for heart disease. Be that as it may, a 2025 survey shows that most people are unaware of this connection.
What’s more, a recent statistics report by the American Heart Association (AHA) notes that as many as 1 in 4 adults with diabetes are undiagnosed in the United States. Additionally, 9 in 10 U.S. adults with chronic kidney disease are undiagnosed in the United States due to factors such as a lack of screening.
The comorbidity of diabetes, kidney disease, and heart disease means that having one of these conditions raises the risk of developing another due to d risk factors, including:
- high blood pressure
- high cholesterol
- high blood sugar
- excess weight
- reduced kidney function
The medical term describing the link between heart disease, diabetes, and kidney disease is cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome, or CKM syndrome, with upward of 90% of Americans unaware that they may have the disease.
If left untreated, complications from CKM syndrome can lead to disability and death from cardiovascular disease.
“We are encouraging people to become aware of the connection between conditions so they and their health care team can think about their overall health beyond individual conditions,” Stacey E. Rosen, MD, volunteer president of the AHA, said in a statement.
“Understanding the connection helps you better prevent complications through lifestyle changes and appropriate treatment.”
Other findings from the AHA statistics report highlight the prevalence of overlapping risk factors driving the prevalence of CKM syndrome in the United States:
- around half of adults have high blood pressure
- 1 in 3 adults has high cholesterol
- around 1 in 7 adults has kidney disease
- more than half of adults have prediabetes or diabetes
- over half of adults have a high waist circumference
“Each of these factors independently stresses the cardiovascular system,” said Jack Wolfson, MD, a board certified cardiologist. “Together, they create a perfect storm.”
Healthline spoke with Wolfson to learn more about how heart, metabolic, and kidney health are connected, and what people at risk for, or living with, CKM syndrome can do to minimize their cardiovascular risk.
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed.
How does metabolic syndrome cause heart problems?
Wolfson: Metabolic syndrome is not a single disease. It’s a cluster of metabolic dysfunction that includes abdominal obesity, insulin resistance, elevated triglycerides, low HDL, and high blood pressure.
Insulin resistance drives chronically elevated
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