American Heart Association 

What is the metabolic syndrome?

The metabolic syndrome is characterized by a group of metabolic risk factors in one person.  They include:

• Central obesity (excessive fat tissue in and around the abdomen)

• Atherogenic dyslipidemia (blood fat disorders — mainly high triglycerides and low HDL cholesterol — that foster plaque buildups in artery walls)

• Raised blood pressure (130/85 mmHg or higher)

• Insulin resistance or glucose intolerance (the body can’t properly use insulin or blood sugar)

• Prothrombotic state (e.g., high fibrinogen or plasminogen activator inhibitor [–1] in the blood)

• Proinflammatory state (e.g., elevated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in the blood)

The underlying causes of this syndrome are overweight/obesity, physical inactivity and genetic factors. People with the metabolic syndrome are at increased risk of coronary heart disease, other diseases related to plaque buildups in artery walls (e.g., stroke and peripheral vascular disease) and type 2 diabetes.

Who has the metabolic syndrome?

The metabolic syndrome has become increasingly common in the United States. It’s estimated that about 47 million U.S. adults have it.

The syndrome is closely associated with a generalized metabolic disorder called insulin resistance, in which the body can’t use insulin efficiently. This is why the metabolic syndrome is also called the insulin resistance syndrome.

Some people are genetically predisposed to insulin resistance. Acquired factors, such as excess body fat and physical inactivity, can elicit insulin resistance and the metabolic syndrome in these people. Most people with insulin resistance have central obesity. The biologic mechanisms at the molecular level between insulin resistance and metabolic risk factors aren’t fully understood and appear to be complex.