Metabolic syndrome and cognitive function in Midlife

Abstract

Objective: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of cardiovascular risk factors associated with cognitive decline. We investigated the relationship between MetS and cognition in middle-aged adults. We hypothesized that higher numbers of MetS components will relate to poorer performance on executive function (EF) tasks as frontal lobe regions critical to EF are particularly vulnerable to cardiovascular disease. Methods: 197 adults (ages 40-60) participated. MetS was evaluated using established criteria. Composite scores for cognitive domains were computed as follows: Global cognitive function (subtests from the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence, 2nd Edition), EF (Stroop Color Word, Digit Span Backward, and Trails A and B), and memory (California Verbal Learning Test, 2 Edition). Results: Higher number of MetS components was related to weaker EF - F(4, 191) = 3.94, p =. 004, MetS components ß = -.14, p =. 044. A similar relationship was detected for tests of memory - F(4, 192) = 7.86, p