Research

Mixed

A prolonged sedentary lifestyle interacts additively with gut microbiota dysbiosis to significantly increase the prevalence of metabolic syndrome, whereas dietary changes associated with higher economic status (increased fruit/vegetable intake) do not independently drive this risk.

If you have a higher income or access to good food, do not assume your diet is the problem. This research suggests that the shift to a sedentary lifestyle (more sitting time) is a major, independent driver of metabolic syndrome, working alongside gut health issues. Prioritize reducing sedentary time as a primary intervention, not just dietary changes.

GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
The MetS index showed an additive effect with sedentary lifestyle, as the prevalence of MetS in individuals with high MetS index values and unhealthy lifestyles was significantly higher than that in the rest of the population.
Yan He et al. · Microbiome · 2018

Why this rating

Large population-level cross-sectional study (N=6896) with rigorous statistical controls, though causality is limited by cross-sectional design.

Source

Linking gut microbiota, metabolic syndrome and economic status based on a population-level analysis

Yan He et al. · Microbiome · 2018

DOI 10.1186/s40168-018-0557-6

cross_sectional · n=6896Cited 188×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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