Incidence and risk factors of metabolic syndrome among Royal Thai Army personnel

Metabolic Syndrome is a clustering of obesity, hyperglycemia/insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and hypertension. We aimed to determine the incidence of metabolic syndrome among Royal Thai Army (RTA) personnel and its risk factors. We conducted a retrospective cohort study using data from 2017 to 2021. Metabolic syndrome was defined by NCEP ATP III (2005 Revision). A total of 98,264 participants were enrolled in the present study. The overall incidence rate of metabolic syndrome was 3.7 per 100 person-year (95% CI 3.7–3.8). The statistically significant risk factors for metabolic syndrome included male sex (aHR 1.40; 95% CI 1.29–1.51), age > 35 years, current alcohol consumption, and no exercise. When stratified by sex, the incidence rate of metabolic syndrome among participants aged ≥ 45 years was higher than those aged < 35 years with aHR 6.34; 95% CI 6.01–6.70 for males and aHR 9.59; 95% CI 7.55–12.19 for females. Our data demonstrated that metabolic syndrome is a common health issue, especially among RTA personnel over 35 years. Alcohol consumption and sedentary behavior played an essential role in facilitating metabolic syndrome in this study population and are potential targets for intervention to enhance primary prevention of the sequelae of metabolic syndrome.