Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 May 9;17(10):1629.
doi: 10.3390/nu17101629.

Association Between Dietary Monounsaturated Fatty Acid Intake and Metabolic Syndrome Among Korean Adults: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Korea National Health and Examination Survey

Bo-Hyun Choi  1 , Sunhye Shin  2
Affiliations

Association Between Dietary Monounsaturated Fatty Acid Intake and Metabolic Syndrome Among Korean Adults: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Korea National Health and Examination Survey

Bo-Hyun Choi et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Introduction/objectives: Although monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) are known as a healthy nutrient, their impact on the risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in the Asian population is not fully understood. This study aimed to determine the association between dietary MUFA intake and the prevalence of MetS among Korean adults.

Materials and methods: The 7th Korea National Health and Examination Survey (2016-2018) was analyzed. MetS was defined based on the guideline of the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATP III) criteria, and MUFA intake was calculated using a single 24 h dietary recall. Data from 3932 younger adults (19-39 years), 6943 middle-aged adults (40-64 years), and 3942 older adults (≥65 years) were included and multivariable logistic regression models were applied to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI).

Results: Approximately 25.8% of Korean adults showed signs of MetS, and the average MUFA intake was 13.70 g/day. Middle-aged adults with a higher MUFA intake had a lower risk of MetS (OR 0.52, 95% CI 0.35-0.78 for men; OR 0.66, 95% CI 0.43-0.99 for women) compared to those with a lower MUFA intake after the adjustment of possible confounding variables, including age, body mass index, total energy intake, household income, alcohol consumption, smoking, aerobic exercise, and energy intake from carbohydrates. No significant associations were observed in younger and older adults.

Conclusions: These results suggest that higher dietary MUFA consumption is associated with a lower risk of MetS in middle-aged Korean adults. These findings suggest that including MUFA-rich foods in the diet could be a practical strategy to reduce the burden of MetS in clinical and public heath settings.

Keywords: Korea National Health and Examination Survey; dietary intake; hypertriglyceridemia; metabolic syndrome; monounsaturated fatty acid.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

    1. Grundy S.M., Cleeman J.I., Daniels S.R., Donato K.A., Eckel R.H., Franklin B.A., Gordon D.J., Krauss R.M., Savage P.J., Smith S.C., Jr., et al. Diagnosis and management of the metabolic syndrome: An American Heart Association/National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Scientific Statement. Circulation. 2005;112:2735–2752. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.105.169404. - DOI - PubMed
    1. National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Expert Panel Third Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (Adult Treatment Panel III) final report. Circulation. 2002;106:3143–3421. doi: 10.1161/circ.106.25.3143. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Saklayen M.G. The Global Epidemic of the Metabolic Syndrome. Curr. Hypertens. Rep. 2018;20:12. doi: 10.1007/s11906-018-0812-z. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Park D., Shin M.J., Després J.P., Eckel R.H., Tuomilehto J., Lim S. 20-Year Trends in Metabolic Syndrome Among Korean Adults from 2001 to 2020. JACC Asia. 2023;3:491–502. doi: 10.1016/j.jacasi.2023.02.007. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Yang Y.S., Han B.D., Han K., Jung J.H., Son J.W. Obesity Fact Sheet in Korea, 2021: Trends in Obesity Prevalence and Obesity-Related Comorbidity Incidence Stratified by Age from 2009 to 2019. J. Obes. Metab. Syndr. 2022;31:169–177. doi: 10.7570/jomes22024. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources