Impact of physical activity on the risk of metabolic syndrome: results from a hapiee study

Abstract

Introduction. The 2018 Ageing Report which analyzed Europe policy challenges for ageing societies shows that fiscal costs linked to pensions, health care and long-term care are expected to rise over the coming decades, as Europe’s population continues to age significantly (1). Thus if we want to achieve healthy ageing it is necessary to identify and understand determinants of human’s health and disease, as well as risk factors for the disease over time (2). In Lithuania, the incidence and mortality rates of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are higher than in most European countries (3,4). For this reason, it is very important to determine the major risk factors that may be associated with CVD. In previous studies we analyzed metabolic syndrome as risk factors of mortality from CVD (5). Thus is very important to analyze that risk factors cloud reduce metabolic syndrome rate in adult and elderly Lithuanian population. Research aim. To investigate the impact of physical activity on the risk of the metabolic syndrome and its components in adult and elderly Lithuanian urban population. Research methods and organization. The study presents data from the survey within the framework of the international project Health, Alcohol and Psychosocial Factors in Eastern Europe (HAPIEE). The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee at the University College London, UK and by the regional Ethics Committee at Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Lithuania. A random sample of 4,257 participants (2076 men; 2181 women) aged 45-72 years were selected for statistical analysis. The diagnostic criteria for the metabolic syndrome by the Third Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATP III) definition are as the presence of three or more of the following risk determinants: 1) increased waist circumference (≥102 cm for men, ≥88 cm for women); 2) elevated triglycerides (≥1.7 mm