What is metabolic syndrome?
Or as it is also known Syndrome X, this disease which occurs as a result of Western-style nutrition and sedentary life, is not a contagious disease but it has become a global epidemic ( The Global Epidemic of the Metabolic Syndrome ).
Although the diagnostic criteria have changed slightly over the years, basically the diagnosis of metabolic syndrome is made in adults if they have at least 3 of the following conditions;
*Waist circumference varies according to race, but >102 cm in men and >88 cm in women
*Triglyceride >150 mg/dl
*HDL cholesterol (benign cholesterol) <40 mg/dl in men, <50 mg/dl in women *Blood pressure >130/dl 85 mmHg
*Fasting blood glucose >100 mg/dl or presence of type 2 diabetes
In children, the diagnosis is made if at least 2 of the following criteria are met.
*If the waist circumference is above the 90th percentile for the child’s age and gender (you can check it in the percentile table below)
*Triglyceride >150 mg/dl
*HDL cholesterol (benign cholesterol) <40 mg/dl in men, <50 mg/dl in women *Blood pressure >130 /85 mmHg
*Fasting blood glucose >100 mg/dl or presence of type 2 diabetes
As can be understood from here, metabolic syndrome may be our yet unnamed diagnosis that threatens all of us. It is actually the diagnosis of our uncle with an apple belly or our aunt with a pear-shaped hip who goes to the doctor after the age of 40 and tells him that his blood pressure is a little high, he has hidden diabetes or his cholesterol is at the border. When we say Syndrome X, this disease which are thought to be mysterious and difficult to diagnose, are the formation of plaques in the vessels when no precautions are taken these plaques can break off over time and block a thinner vessel causing fatal emergencies such as heart attack or stroke. Also it can makes life unbearable by causing sleep apnea, erectile dysfunction-infertility in men, and polycystic ovary syndrome in women.
Those who gradually put together the diagnostic criteria; Our wrong eating habits by spending lots of money, the long hours we spend in front of the computer or phone, our inability to send our children to the streets to play because of fear and some small genetic factors. For to not to consult a dietician to lose the excess weight we have gained by the all mistakes we made, to not to wait in the endocrine examination for our hidden high blood glucose rates, to not to take medications for our hidden high blood pressure, we just need to learn what a healthy life really is from childhood. Walking to where we can go on foot, cycling to where we can go by bike, using the stairs if we don’t have issues on our knees, keeping distance between us with the computers, getting used to eat vegetables, and not to use the flour-salt or sugar, means that we can stay away from most of these diseases.
I wish everyone a slim waist and plenty of movement…
Dr. Osman Ertürk
He graduated from Ege University Faculty of Medicine in 2004. After 8 years of emergency medicine, he worked as a flight physician and occupational physician at the Gazipaşa-Alanya Airport Portclinic Health Unit for 12 years. He is currently working as a research assistant at ALKU Training and Research Hospital, Department of Chest Diseases. He founded the website CureAsk.com with the aim of alleviating the anxiety of patients, especially in cases requiring specific treatment, and enabling them to meet with relevant specialist doctors in another city or even another country.