Psychosocial predictors of Metabolic Syndrome in Chilean adults

Abstract

Background: According to the Chilean National Health Survey (2010), the prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) in adults was 35%, however how psychosocial factors contributes to its prevalence in Chilean population has been under-studied. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine how psychosocial factors predicts MetS in a sample of adults. Methods: A non-experimental study was designed to test the cross-sectional association between psychosocial factors and MetS, as defined by the ATP III criteria in a sample of 446 participants free of MetS. Measures of psychological variables including psychological stress, weight stigma, depressive symptoms, perceived discrimination, and fatalism, as well as health behaviors were self-reported. Inflammatory markers, and MetS components were obtained with standardized procedures. Findings: Structural equation modeling revealed an indirect effect of psychological stress on MetS via non-healthy diet, and fatalism. Participants scoring high in psychological stress had greater fatalism, and poorer diet, which in turn predicted greater waist size circumference and MetS components.  Discussion: These findings suggest that psychological stress was indirectly related to MetS through health behaviors and fatalism, allowing us to identify mechanisms through which psychological stress is associated with MetS.