{"id":2391,"date":"2026-04-15T17:23:51","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T17:23:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aetf.com\/?post_type=news&#038;p=2391"},"modified":"2026-04-15T18:30:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-15T18:30:09","slug":"a-healthy-heart-starts-here","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.aetf.com\/news\/a-healthy-heart-starts-here\/","title":{"rendered":"A Healthy Heart Starts Here"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3>Why Managing Weight Matters<\/h3>\n<p>More than 2 in 5 adults over age 20 have obesity, a chronic condition linked to serious health problems, including heart disease, the leading cause of death in the U.S.<\/p>\n<h4>What Is Obesity?<\/h4>\n<p>Obesity is a complex disease involving excess body fat. It develops from a combination of genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors. It\u2019s not just about weight\u2014it affects how your body functions overall.<\/p>\n<h4>How Is It Diagnosed?<\/h4>\n<p>Body Mass Index (BMI), which compares weight to height, is commonly used (calculate yours at cdc.gov\/bmi). Providers also review medical history, exams, lab results, and lifestyle habits.<\/p>\n<h4>How Does It Affect Heart Health?<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Obesity is tied to high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, and type 2 diabetes\u2014all major heart disease risks.<\/li>\n<li>Excess abdominal fat can cause atherosclerosis\u2014the thickening and narrowing of arteries.<\/li>\n<li>An obese person\u2019s heart must work harder to pump blood, which can lead to heart failure.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>How Can It Be Managed?<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Get preventive care. Monitor BMI, blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar. The Fund covers recommended preventive services like these at 100% when received at an in-network provider.<\/li>\n<li>Adopt heart-healthy habits. Move more and choose nutritious foods. Free health and fitness tracking apps can help you reach health goals with tracking, workouts, recipes, and more. Try the My FitnessPal, Nike Training Club, Google Fit, or Apple Health apps.<\/li>\n<li>Talk with a specialist. Ask about safe, effective strategies for weight loss. Currently, the Fund covers certain GLP-1s for weight loss; preauthorization may be required.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Healthy Reminders<\/h3>\n<p><strong>New! Fertility Support<\/strong><br \/>\nProgyny offers coverage for many paths to parenthood. Get details, including out-of-pocket costs, at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aetf.com\/health-welfare\/family-planning-support\/\">Fertility &amp; Family Planning Support.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Why Managing Weight Matters More than 2 in 5 adults over age 20 have obesity, a chronic condition linked to serious health problems, including heart disease, the leading cause of death in the U.S. What Is Obesity? Obesity is a complex disease involving excess body fat. It develops from a combination of genetic, environmental, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":2392,"template":"","categories":[5,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2391","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-latest-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aetf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/2391","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aetf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aetf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aetf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2392"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aetf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2391"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aetf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2391"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aetf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2391"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}