A recent study has found that nearly 80 percent of young adults with an average age of 23 have early signs of developing diabetes, heart, and/or kidney disease.              

Almost none of those studied had symptoms or a diagnosis to warn them. Nearly 80 percent showed signs of cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) syndrome, a combination of excess weight, metabolic dysfunction, kidney strain, and, in some cases, measurable artery damage, according to the study published in the American Heart Association journal Circulation: Population Health and Outcomes.

CKM syndrome is a term the American Heart Association uses to describe how metabolic, kidney, and heart disease feed into one another. It ranges from stage 0, meaning no risk factors, to stage 4, where they carry existing heart conditions such as coronary heart disease, heart failure, or stroke.

A person can be classified as being in an early CKM stage simply because they carry excess weight or have a single borderline lab result—long before any signs of heart disease appear in their medical record.

Most of the 80 percent group falls entirely into the early, risk-factor-only stages. Out of the young adults evaluated in the study, 76.4 percent were in the early stages (stages 1 and 2), while less than 3 percent had reached the advanced stages.

Prevention Efforts Must Begin Earlier

Overall, the total percentage of adults with some stage of CKM syndrome increased by about 5 percent to 6 percent compared to a couple of decades ago, driven primarily by obesity.

Researchers evaluated 1,283 participants with an average age of 23 years. None of the participants had stage 4 CKM syndrome, the most severe classification. Participants in stage 3 were more likely to show signs of early artery damage, such as thickened carotid artery walls, which can be caused by cholesterol and fatty buildup and high blood pressure, driving plaque formation.

Early artery damage isn’t a life sentence, Dr. Donald Lloyd-Jones, study author and a cardiologist at Boston Medical Center, told The Epoch Times. “This early injury can be arrested and potentially reversed if they can improve lifestyle approaches and work with their doctor to see whether other things like medicine may be required.”

Why Young Adults Are Flying Blind

Standard tools doctors use to predict long-term heart disease risk, such as the Predicting Risk of Cardiovascular Disease EVENTs (PREVENT) equations, are not built for people this young, the researchers noted. Lloyd-Jones recommends focusing on key lifestyle changes such as diet, exercise, and sleep for a healthier future.

“This is particularly helpful in younger people when near-term risk may be low, but we know that risk factor exposures are accumulating that will affect their long-term longevity and outcomes,” he said.

Dr. Salil V. Deo, an associate professor of surgery at Case Western Reserve University’s School of Medicine who wasn’t involved in the study, said the arterial injury findings are “concerning.” Young adults with these markers are “at higher risk for CVD [cardiovascular disease] in the future,” he told The Epoch Times.

The bigger problem is that this kind of damage is silent. “This is what makes the issue even more challenging,” he said. “It is the same with blood pressure,” which is a silent killer.  

Even a few extra points of systolic blood pressure sustained over many years can harm the cardiovascular system and kidneys, often without any noticeable symptoms until real damage is done.

According to the American Heart Association CKM Syndrome guidelines, young adults should start basic screening at age 20, regardless of how healthy they feel.

8 Everyday Health Choices Make a Difference

The American Heart Association’s Life’s Essential 8 is a checklist for improving and maintaining cardiovascular health and includes eating right, engaging in physical activity, avoiding tobacco, sleeping well, managing weight, and maintaining healthy cholesterol, blood sugar, and blood pressure levels. 

For people in their 20s, the focus should be on improving cardiovascular health, Lloyd-Jones said in a press release. 

“The Life’s Essential 8 framework is designed for measuring, monitoring, and improving cardiovascular health at any age, but especially in young adults,” he said. These everyday health choices can influence long-term heart, kidney, and metabolic health. 

The authors also noted that additional long-term studies are needed to fully understand how CKM syndrome in young adults relates to future heart disease risk.