A new study has revealed that cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with reduced metabolic syndrome risk among smokers.
Researcher Darla Kendzor of UTHealth School of Public Health Dallas Regional Campus said that study findings indicate that there is an inverse relationship between cardiorespiratory fitness and cardiometabolic risk among adult smokers.
Metabolic syndrome is the clustering of at least three of the following five risk factors: elevated fasting glucose, excess waist circumference, elevated blood pressure, elevated triglycerides and abnormal HDL cholesterol. The presence of metabolic syndrome has been found to increase the risk for cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes.
In the study, the risk for metabolic syndrome was reduced for smokers who were either highly or moderately fit. Smokers with the highest level of fitness reduced their risk for metabolic syndrome by 48 percent compared to those in the low fitness category. The moderate fitness group had a 27 percent reduced risk for metabolic syndrome in comparison to those who had low fitness levels.
In addition, participants in the moderate and high fitness categories reduced their risk for the development of elevated fasting blood glucose. Those in the highest fitness category also reduced their risk of developing abnormal levels of HDL cholesterol, also known as "good cholesterol."
While study findings emphasize that fitness plays a protective role against cardiovascular disease even among smokers, the research emphasizes the importance of quitting smoking to decrease the overall risk of morbidity or mortality, concluded Kendzor.
The study is published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
