Metabolic Syndrome: A Primer

Metabolic syndrome is a group of health conditions that occur together, increasing your risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes.

The varied conditions of metabolic syndrome—also known as insulin resistance syndrome or dysmetabolic syndrome—are:

• increased blood pressure
• high blood sugar
• excess body fat around the waist
• abnormal cholesterol or triglyceride levels

This week, we’ll be presenting the first part of our Metabolic Syndrome Guide: Primer.

(Special shout-out to PHMP Member Missie for suggesting this article!)

Signs and symptoms

Some of the signs and symptoms of metabolic syndrome are:

A large waist circumference

• For men, this means a waist measurement of 40 inches (102 cm) or more
• For women, it means a waist measurement of 35 inches (88 cm) or more

High triglyceride levels

• Triglyceride is a type of fat found in the blood
• A triglyceride level of 150 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or higher is considered high

Low HDL cholesterol levels

• HDL cholesterol is the “good” cholesterol that helps remove excess cholesterol from the arteries
• A HDL level of less than 40 mg/dL for men or less than 50 mg/dL for women is considered low

High blood pressure

• A blood pressure of 130/85 mm Hg or higher is considered high

High fasting blood sugar

• A blood sugar level of 100 mg/dL or higher after an overnight fast is considered high

Having three or more of these signs and symptoms means you may have metabolic syndrome, which, of course, means you should consult your doctor for a proper diagnosis and treatment plan.

Diagnosis

The diagnosis for metabolic syndrome involves tests to determine all the factors listed above. That means blood tests, blood pressure monitoring, and waist measurement.

Treatment: Lifestyle Changes

Medications exist to help treat metabolic syndrome—and we’ll get to those in a moment—but before you consider adding another pill to your daily regimen, don’t neglect the more fulfilling way to combat this condition: making positive lifestyle changes.

Lifestyle changes such as eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, quitting smoking and managing stress can help prevent or reverse metabolic syndrome and its complications.

Treatment: Medications

Combined with positive lifestyle changes, and depending on the severity of your symptoms and condition, medications, per usual, can have great effect on treating and managing metabolic syndrome. :

Since you’ll need a prescription for any of these drugs, you’ll obviously have to check with your doctor first. And in case you’re wondering if any of these drugs may interfere or cause negative reactions due to something else you’re taking, check out this handy Drug Interactions Checker on drugs.com.

Here’s a brief rundown of types of drugs with their generic and brand names:

We hope this primer on metabolic syndrome helped. Stayed tuned for more info!