Hypophosphataemia: cause of the disturbed metabolism in the metabolic syndrome

Abstract

The clustering of risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) in obese patients may be attributable to a disturbed metabolism caused by hypophosphataemia. A low serum phosphate (S-P) level may be a limiting factor for glucose metabolism and may account for hyperglycaemia, with an increased risk of NIDDM and hypertension and consequent increased risk of stroke. Low S-HDL levels, known to exist in the metabolic syndrome, as well as high serum triglycerides may also have been the results of phosphate depletion. The hypothesis presents a new serious disturbance which accounts for the dyslipidaemia, hyperglycaemia and the hypertension in metabolic syndrome. The proposed causal relationship between low S-P and the clustering of risk factors is based on results from a cross-sectional study of obese patients, where low S-P was associated with high body mass index (BMI), high blood glucose (B-glu), high systolic blood pressure (SBP), high diastolic blood pressure (DBP), but low serum high density lipoprotein (S-HDL) and serum magnesium (S-Mg) levels. Knowledge from experimental and clinical studies on hypophosphataemia and/or phosphate depletion are referred to when discussing the hypothesis.