Consumption of fruit and vegetables associated with the metabolic syndrome and its components in an adult population sample

Metabolic Syndrome (MS) increases the risk of cardiovascular events and the recommended intake of fruits and vegetables (FV) is related to its prevention. The scope of this study is to associate the intake of FV and its relation to MS and its components in an adult population sample. A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted with 636 adults in the period between 2004 and 2008. Anthropometric, clinical, dietary and biochemical profiles were recorded for all participants. MS was classified by the NCEP ATP-III, modified for glucose >100 mg/dl. Logistic regression was used to determine the odds ratio (OR) between the consumption of FV with MS and its components, and the level of significance adopted was 5%. The intake of fruit had protective effects against obesity (OR: 0.77, CI: 0.38-0.93), hypertriglyceridemia (OR: 0.76, CI: 0.35-0.96) and presence of MS (OR: 0.78, CI: 0.39-0.96), and proper intake of FV showed a protective effect for the presence of MS (OR: 0.79, CI: 0.41-0.95). Vegetable intake did not show protective effects / risk for the presence of MS and its components. The conclusion drawn is that the recommended intake of FV revealed a protective effect against MS and recommended intake of fruit had a protective effect not only for MS but also for its components.