Women's Health and the Metabolic Syndrome

Abstract

The metabolic syndrome is a cluster of cardiovascular risk factors that identifies individuals at a relatively high, long-term risk for atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance and central obesity are the main risk conditions underlying the metabolic syndrome. As obesity rates increase worldwide especially in women, accompanying rising frequency of insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, diabetes, and hypertension contribute to increasing rates of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. According to the latest NCEP/ATPIII definition of the metabolic syndrome almost 25% (from 6.7 up to 43.5% according to age) of the United States and European adult population appear to have the syndrome and in the recent years it has been more prevalent in men than in women. Prevalence is increasing and the increase seems to be steeper in women. The contribution of the different components of the syndrome differs between genders. Age, endocrine dysfunction (especially loss of ovarian estrogens) as well as genetic factors modify the response to underlying factors. Physical inactivity, which diminishes by age, is more prevalent in women than in men. Treatment goals are to prevent cardiovascular disease by both altering the risk factors that are components of the syndrome and more importantly applying lifestyle modifications with caloric restriction and exercise.