Gender Differences of Health Behaviors in the Risk of Metabolic Syndrome for Middle-Aged Adults: A National Cross-Sectional Study in South Korea

Jaehee Yoon, Jeewuan Kim and Heesook Son
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Jaehee Yoon: Wolchon Elementary School, Seoul 07980, Korea
Jeewuan Kim: Department of Statistics and Data Science, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
Heesook Son: Red Cross College of Nursing, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 06974, Korea

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 7, 1-16

Abstract: This study examined gender differences in health behaviors for the risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) among middle-aged adults using nationally representative data from the Seventh Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2016–2018). The sample included data from 8677 middle-aged adults. The Health Practice Index measured health behaviors, including smoking, alcohol use, physical activity, sleeping, eating breakfast, working hours, nutritionally balanced diet, and mental stress. Complex sample multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine the association between the Health Practice Index (HPI) and MetS. Men and women with poor or moderate HPI scores had significantly higher risks of having MetS than those with good HPI scores. Controlling for covariates, high-risk alcohol use ( p < 0.001) and physical activity ( p = 0.008) were associated with the risk of MetS in men and women, respectively. Men reporting alcohol use and women lacking a healthy diet were, respectively, 2.056 times (adjusted odds ratio (OR) = 2.056, 95% CI: 1.681–2.514) and 1.306 times (adjusted OR = 1.306, 95% CI: 1.075–1.587) more likely to have increased risks of MetS. Given these gender differences in health behaviors, developing tailored interventions could be beneficial in preventing MetS among middle-aged men and women.

Keywords: gender differences; metabolic syndrome; health practice index; middle-aged (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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