Metabolic syndrome and the development of type 2 diabetes among professionals living in Beijing, China

AimsThe magnitude of the association between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and incident diabetes is still not widely evaluated in China. This study explored the association of MetS and its components with the development of diabetes among professionals living in Beijing.MethodsPopulation-based 6-year prospective study. The cohort consisted of 7922 eligible persons aged ≥20. Either fasting glucose (FPG) level ≥7.0 mmol/l at the follow-up survey or diagnoses of diabetes during the 6-year period were considered incident diabetes cases. MetS was identified by both the definitions proposed by the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) and the International Diabetes Federation (IDF).ResultsThe accumulated incidence of diabetes was 3.6% for men and 2.5% for women. MetS associated a 4.7- and 5.7-fold increase of the diabetic risk in men and women, respectively. Hyperglycemia exhibited the highest association with diabetes. FPG of 5.6–5.79 mmol/l already presented a risk of diabetes. However, without hyperglycemia in the clustering of any 1, 2, 3 to 4 metabolic components, the tendency of increased diabetic risk was still observed.ConclusionsMetS has a strong association with incident diabetes. Of the individual components, hyperglycemia is the strongest predictor of diabetes. Additional numbers of metabolic components increase the risk of developing diabetes.