[Nutrition, metabolic syndrome and morbid obesity]

Obesity, and specifically morbid obesity (MO), is a chronic disease with serious health consequences related to the associated comorbidities and constitutes a leading risk factor for the metabolic syndrome (MS) and cardiovascular disease (CVD). In the present study we analyze the abnormalities related to MO in the plasmatic levels of nutrients (both macro and micronutrients).

We retrospectively evaluated data of 497 patients, 369 women and 128 men diagnosed of MO. The average age of the patients was 40.07 (rank: 16-62). Previous to the study anthropometric measures, blood pressure (BP) and plasma levels of insulin and macronutrients and micronutrients were measured.

The higher body mass index (BMI) in women and the waist circumference (WC) in both sexes demonstrates the existence of visceral obesity. Hypertensive disease (HD) was found in 18.6% of men and 33.5% of women. 55.1% of the men and 42.3% of the women had three or more criteria defining the risk of developing MetS. We found hyperglycemia, insulinemia and dyslipemia. We did not find protein malnutrition, but there were elevated values of reactive C-protein. Biochemical indicators of macro and micronutrients were not altered.

The high incidence of patients with HD, carriers of three or more criteria that defines the metabolic syndrome (SM), suggests that a very significant part of our patients suffered the metabolic syndrome (MS). The term metabolic syndrome defines the group of factors of metabolic risk of CVD, which is confirmed by the elevated levels of reactive C-protein. We did not find abnormalities in the plasmatic levels of biochemical markers of nutrients.