Author(s): CASTELLI, D., CORRAL, C., RAMOS SANTIAGO, T., HALEY, A., Institution: NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY, Country: UNITED STATES, Abstract-ID: 2084

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) has been implicated as mitigating health risk (Pasha et al., 2018), but is understudied in young Latina women. MetS is the clustering of high values of blood pressure, blood glucose, abdominal fat, waist circumference, and blood lipids to increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and Type II diabetes. Approximately 1 in 3 Americans have MetS risk, which is preventable. Purpose: The purpose of this preliminary study was to determine the association between moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and MetS risk. Methods: As part of the first wave of a large-scale study examining MetS risk among young women, ages 18-40, 32 individuals (40% Latina) consented to complete a health questionnaire, biometric data collection, finger prick blood sample for lipids panel analysis, and wearing a Fitbit Inspire for 14 days. Results: After data were cleaned and inspected for normality, participants were categorized as healthy/unhealthy based on a composite of risks from the survey, biometric data, and blood assays. We used the odds ratio package in R Studio to analyze low MVPA (less than 20 min per day, based on the median of the sample) and metabolic factors. Those with < 20 min daily MVPA were 1.72 times more likely to have unhealthy LDL levels (95%CI: 1.1289, 2.652535), and 3.89 times more likely to have unhealthy HDL levels (95%CI: 1.78940, 9.469539), and 2.29 times more likely to have an unhealthy body fat % (95%CI: 1.213306, 4.575957). Conclusions: Since MetS is preventable with behavioral change, MVPA should be a primary focus of intervention among young women to mitigate risk. Future research should examine the cultural and contextual differences in the determinants of MVPA and how this risk may influence brain vulnerability to inflammation.

Pasha, E. P., Birdsill, A. C., Oleson, S., Haley, A. P., & Tanaka, H. (2018). Physical activity mitigates adverse effect of metabolic syndrome on vessels and brain. Brain imaging and behavior, 12, 1658-1668.