Research

Mixed

Non-Hispanic black men have a lower likelihood of metabolic syndrome compared to non-Hispanic white men, while non-Hispanic black women have a higher likelihood compared to non-Hispanic white women.

If you are a Black man, your risk is statistically lower than White men, but still significant. If you are a Black woman, your risk is higher than White women. Regardless of race, managing weight and socioeconomic factors (like access to care and healthy food) are critical levers for reducing your personal risk.

GoodQualifiesHIGH confidence
During 2007–2012, non-Hispanic black men were less likely than non-Hispanic white men to have metabolic syndrome (odds ratio [OR], 0.77; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.66–0.89). However, non-Hispanic black women were more likely than non-Hispanic white women to have metabolic syndrome (OR, 1.20; 95% CI, 1.02–1.40).
Justin X. Moore et al. · Preventing Chronic Disease · 2017

Why this rating

Large sample size and rigorous statistical adjustment for confounders.

Source

Metabolic Syndrome Prevalence by Race/Ethnicity and Sex in the United States, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988–2012

Justin X. Moore et al. · Preventing Chronic Disease · 2017

DOI 10.5888/pcd14.160287

cross_sectional · n=51371Cited 948×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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