The Relations between metabolic syndrome, physical activity, and dietary patterns in Korean adults

This study involved a secondary analysis of 2016 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data to identify the relations between metabolic syndrome, physical activity, and dietary patterns in Korean adults. The χ 2 -test, t-test, and logistic regression analysis of complex samples were conducted on the data of 3,352 subjects aged 19 to 64 years with metabolic syndrome. The prevalences of metabolic syndrome among men and women were 29.7% and 16.7%, respectively. In men, the high physical activity group showed a 0.8-fold increase in the likelihood of metabolic syndrome (OR=0.8, p=.038), and higher fat intake increased the risk of metabolic syndrome 0.98-fold (OR=0.98, p=.007). In women, the high physical activity group showed a 0.7-fold increase in the likelihood of metabolic syndrome (OR=0.71, p=.034), higher carbohydrate intake increased the risk of metabolic syndrome by 1.03-fold (OR=1.03, p<.001), and that higher protein and fat intakes reduced the risk by 0.96-fold (OR=0.96, p=.009) and 0.95-fold (OR=0.95, p<.001), respectively. The study shows that to meet the challenge presented by the increasing prevalence of metabolic syndrome, efforts are needed to screen for adults at risk of the metabolic syndrome by regular physical examination and to develop and provide intervention programs that involve regular high intensity physical activity and controlled carbohydrate, protein, and fat intakes.