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One of the identified risk factors for metabolic syndrome is psychological or perceived stress. Chronic stress can induce systemic inflammation and alter inflammatory activity, which in turn can contribute to the development and severity of metabolic syndrome. Chronic stress has also been linked to elevated levels of inflammatory markers including interleukin-6 (IL-6) and C-reactive protein (CRP). In fact, several studies have shown that those under high amounts of work-related stress also had a higher risk of elevated CRP levels, which in turn were related to an increased risk of metabolic syndrome. However, this was one of only a few studies that have looked at the specific relationship between stress, inflammation, and metabolic syndrome.
A study by Jurgens et al. aimed to confirm systemic inflammation as a pathway linking perceived stress and metabolic syndrome. Using a set of data from 648 mid-to-late life adults (average age of 52 years) living in the United States, the authors analyzed biomarkers of inflammation and metabolic health and compared those to their measures of perceived stress.
The authors found a small but significant direct effect of perceived stress on metabolic syndrome, such that higher appraisals of stress were associated with greater metabolic dysregulation. They also found a significant indirect effect of increased stress on systemic inflammation and elevated inflammation markers, which in turn was associated with greater metabolic dysregulation; this particular effect accounted for 61.5% of the variance in the relationship between perceived stress and metabolic syndrome, meaning that inflammation was confirmed as the link between stress and metabolic syndrome in more than half of the cases.
As the authors conclude,
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