Objectives: The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome is increasing worldwide. We studied its prevalence in Finnish young adults. Three definitions were applied: National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP), European Group for the Study of Insulin Resistance (EGIR) and International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria. We also investigated the secular trend in the metabolic syndrome amongst 24-year-old adults from 1986 to 2001.
Design: Population-based follow-up study.
Subjects: 2182 healthy young adults (1007 men; 1175 women) aged 24-39 years.
Main outcome measures: Metabolic syndrome and its components.
Results: The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome was 13.0% with NCEP criteria, 9.8% with EGIR criteria and 14.3% with IDF criteria. With NCEP and IDF criteria, the prevalence increased with age in both sexes, but more dramatically in men. There was over sixfold increase in the metabolic syndrome from 4.0% to 25.2% (P < 0.0001) in men between ages 24 and 39 years using the IDF criteria. Increases in obesity and serum triglycerides accounted much for the increase in the prevalence by age. The significant secular trend was seen between years 1986 and 2001 in 24-year-old subjects. The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome increased significantly from 1.0% to 7.5% (P < 0.0001) in 15 years.
Conclusions: There is a substantial increase in the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in healthy young adults between ages 24 and 39 driven mostly by the increase in obesity. The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome is higher amongst Finnish young adult men compared with women. The secular trend between 1986 and 2001 suggest a dramatic increase in the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in 24-year-old young adults. Condensed abstract The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome may be increasing in young people. We studied the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in 2182 young Finnish adults aged 24-39 years using NCEP, EGIR and IDF criteria. The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome was higher amongst Finnish men than women and increased dramatically with age. There was also a dramatic increase in the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in 24-year-old adults between 1986 and 2001.