Association of White Blood Cell Count With Metabolic Syndrome in Obese Men and Women

Background: Despite the widespread obesity epidemic in the world, not all obese people are equally susceptible to the complications of obesity. Inflammatory factors play an important role in the complications of obesity. Objective: This study aims to evaluate the association of White Blood Cell (WBC) count with metabolic syndrome in overweight/obese men and women. Methods: This cross-sectional study is a part of the Qazvin Metabolic Disease Study (QMDS) conducted in 2010 in Qazvin, Iran. Participants were 622 obese people with a body mass index (BMI) ≥25 kg/m2, recruited from the QMDS. Metabolic syndrome was defined according to the Adult Treatment Panel III criteria. Data were analyzed using chi-square test, t-test, and logistic regression analysis (to evaluate the relationship between WBC count quartiles and metabolic syndrome). Findings: Prevalence of metabolic syndrome was not significantly different between men and women. In men, prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its components were not different between WBC quartiles. In women, 2.23% and 5.06% had metabolic syndrome in the first and fourth quartiles of WBC count, respectively (P<0.001). Moreover, the prevalence of insulin resistance was higher in fourth quartile compared to the first quartile (7.74% vs. 6.52%, P<0.001). After controlling the effects of age and BMI factors, the risk of metabolic syndrome in the fourth quartile of WBC count remained significant in women (OR=2.56, P<0.01). Conclusion: Association of WBC count with metabolic syndrome is significant in obese women compared to obese men.