Development, Implementation, and Evaluation of an Educational Package to Control the Biomedical Profile of Metabolic Syndrome

BACKGROUND: Unhealthy lifestyle behaviors are a major concern in the development of metabolic syndrome (MetS). This study aimed to develop, implement, and evaluate a lifestyle education package as a strategy to control the biomedical components of MetS METHODS: A total of 72 women and men (aged 18–68 y) with MetS were selected through randomized sampling. They were classified into 2 groups: an intervention group that received a lifestyle educational package with close follow-ups and a control group that received only usual care. Anthropometric indices, blood pressure, lipid profiles, and fasting blood sugar were assessed at baseline and after 3 months. RESULTS: The lifestyle-modification program was associated with a modest weight loss (2 ± 0.4 kg; P < 0.001), a significant reduction in waist circumference (2.3 ± 0.9 cm; P < 0.001) and the hip circumference (1 ± 0.3 cm; P < 0.001), and a sharp decrease in diastolic blood pressure (5.3 ± 1.4 mm Hg; P < 0.001), compared with the baseline values in the intervention group. Additionally, according to the one-way MANOVA analysis, 33.8% of the changes in MetS components were attributable to the educational intervention (P < 0.001, F = 5.27). CONCLUSIONS: Improvement in lipid profile and anthropometric measures suggest that a lifestyle package based on multivariable health education is an acceptable method.