Factors associated with metabolic syndrome among Korean office workers

ABSTRACT

To assess the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and identify risk factors associated with MetS among Korean office workers, this cross-sectional study was conducted with 776 office workers. The prevalence of MetS was 13.5%; elevated waist circumference (27.5%), elevated fasting glucose (23.1%), elevated triglycerides (22.2%), low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (13.4%), and elevated BP (9.4%). Having any medical health problems (OR = 3.98, 95% CI: 2.01–7.85), more knowledge of MetS (OR = 1.26, 95% CI: 1.02–1.56), higher BMI (OR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.30–1.57), current smoking (OR = 3.78, 95% CI: 1.04–13.73), and physical inactivity (OR = 3.22, 95% CI: 1.21–8.58) were significantly associated with increased likelihood of MetS. Addressing the influence of these factors on MetS could lead to the development of workplace-based intervention strategies to encourage lifestyle changes and prevent the risk of MetS among Korean office workers.

KEYWORDS:

• Cardiovascular risk factors
• Korean workers
• lifestyle
• metabolic syndrome
• office workers

Funding

This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (Grant number: R1210551, PI: Ryu) funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.