About 29% of the adult population of Talca, Chile, suffers from the metabolic syndrome (MS), a value higher than the national prevalence. Evidence indicates that exercise and nutritional changes reduce the predominance of this syndrome. The goal of this study was to evaluate the effects of a structured interventional program of physical activity and nutritional counseling in adults with MS. Fifty-one subjects were studied: 27 were included in the interventional program (I-MS). The control group was formed by 24 individuals who did not participate in the program (NI-MS). We assessed body weight, corporal composition, arterial pressure, glycemia, and lipid profile at baseline and after 18 weeks of treatment. After this period, the I-SM group showed a significant decrease in triglycerides (geometric mean 202.2 to 110.5 mg/dL, p < 0.001), diastolic blood pressure (mean 85.4 to 79.6 mmHg, p = 0.001), waist circumference (mean men 101.5 to 94.1 cm, p < 0.001; mean women 107.2 to 96.2 cm, p < 0.001), weight (mean 81.1 to 77.2 kg, p < 0.001), and body mass index (mean 31.8 to 30.2 kg/m2, p < 0.001). In the NI-MS group, the individual parameters did not change significantly. Our results show that a non-pharmacological treatment based on exercise exerts an important beneficial effect in patients with MS, mainly on the waist circumference, blood pressure, and triglycerides.

Full text (sometimes free) may be available at these link(s):      help

• DOI
• PubMed
• PDF locator
• publisher