Abstract
The Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) is recognized as a predictor of cardiovascular outcomes and type 2 diabetes (T2DM). The MetS is a constellation of clinical and metabolic risk factors that include abdominal obesity, dyslipidemia, glucose intolerance, and hypertension. There are ethnic and racial differences in the prevalence of MetS and its components. In general, African-Americans have lower prevalence of MetS when compared to whites, but suffer disproportionately from higher cardiovascular mortality and T2DM. Specifically, African-American women (AAW) have higher rates of T2DM and cardiovascular mortality despite a more favorable lipid and lipoprotein profile. This is paradoxical. However, there is a general upward trend in the prevalence of MetS in the US. The reasons are debatable, but could be multifactorial, including genetics and environmental factors. Thus, there is a need to understand the increasing trend in the MetS, its components, and the associated outcomes for AAW. Therefore, the purpose of this mini review is to (1) understand the increasing prevalence of MetS and its components in AAW and (2) provide suggestions for future prevention of cardiovascular disease and T2DM in AAW.
Highlights
The metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a constellation of interrelated clinical and metabolic risk factors; including abdominal obesity, dyslipidemia, glucose intolerance, and hypertension that are associated with increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM) [1,2,3,4,5]
The authors found the greatest increase in MetS among young AA women (AAW), 20–39 years, which was attributed to increases in waist circumference (WC) and hypertension [8]
These results may partly contribute to the apparent paradox of lower visceral adipose tissue (VAT) in the setting of cardiometabolic risk factors in AAW when compared to their white counterparts
Summary
The metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a constellation of interrelated clinical and metabolic risk factors; including abdominal obesity, dyslipidemia, glucose intolerance, and hypertension that are associated with increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM) [1,2,3,4,5]. The major increase in MetS for women was attributed to obesity [waist circumference (WC)] increased from 46.0 ± 1.4 to 58.0 ± 1.1%; MetS and Its Components in AAW hypertension 27.8 ± 0.9 to 36.6 ± 0.8%; hypertriglyceridemia 24.7 ± 1.2 to 27.6 ± 0.8%; hyperglycemia 24.2 ± 1.2 to 29.2 ± 1.0% [8]. The prevalence of MetS for AAW increased from 14.48, 14.02 to 20.89%, compared to 15.28, 17.37 to 25.08% for white women, for the corresponding time-periods. There are several reasons for the increases in MetS among women; these include aging, increases in obesity, T2DM, hypertension, and physical inactivity. Because of the dipartites in T2DM and cardiovascular outcomes in AAW when compared to white women, it is of utmost importance to understand the trends of MetS and its components in AAW. The purpose of this Mini Review is to [1] understand the increasing prevalence of MetS and its components in AAW and [2] provide suggestions for future prevention of CVD and T2DM in AAW
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