The relationship between metabolic syndrome and increase of metabolic syndrome score and serum vitamin D levels in Korean adults: 2012 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

The present study was conducted to assess the relationship between metabolic syndrome and metabolic syndrome score (MSS) and serum vitamin D levels in adults aged 20 or older (n = 5,483) using 2012 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data, which represents national data in Korea. Key study results were as follows: First, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] levels decreased significantly with an increase in MSS (p = 0.004), shown by serum 25(OH)D levels after adjusting the variables (age, gender, BMI, TC, HDL-C, FBS, SBP, and DBP, etc.). These were 17.30 ± 0.16 ng/ml for MSS 0, 17.13 ± 0.15 ng/ml for MSS 1, 17.02 ± 0.16 ng/ml for MSS 2, 16.60 ± 0.20 ng/ml for MSS 3, 16.55 ± 0.28 ng/ml for MSS 4, and 15.52 ± 0.50 ng/ml for MSS 5. Second, after adjusting the related variables, serum 25(OH)D levels were significantly lower (p = 0.004) in the metabolic syndrome group (16.49 ± 0.19 ng/ml) than the non-metabolic syndrome group (17.16 ± 0.09 ng/ml). In conclusion, metabolic syndrome and the increased levels of its components are inversely associated with the serum vitamin D concentration in Korean adults.