Effect of lifestyle intervention on the occurrence of metabolic syndrome and its components in the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study.

Abstract

The aim of this secondary analysis of the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study was to assess the effects of lifestyle intervention on metabolic syndrome and its components. A total of 522 middle-aged overweight men and women with impaired glucose tolerance were randomized into an individualized lifestyle intervention group or a standard care control group. National Cholesterol Education Program criteria were used for the definition of metabolic syndrome. At the end of the study, with a mean follow-up of 3.9 years, we found a significant reduction in the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in the intervention group compared with the control group (odds ratio [OR] 0.62 [95% CI 0.40-0.95]) and in the prevalence of abdominal obesity (0.48 [0.28-0.81]). The results suggest that lifestyle intervention may also reduce risk of cardiovascular disease in the long run.