PURPOSE This study aimed to examine the associations between accelerometer-measured physical activity and both cardiometabolic disease risk factors and metabolic syndrome in Korean adults. METHODS We performed a retrospective cohort study with age-sex matched case-control using data from the 2014-2016 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which was administered to South Korean adults (n=320). Individuals were categorized into quartiles based on accelerometer-measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Demographic and physical characteristics, waist circumference, visceral adiposity index, blood pressure, lipid profiles, and TG/HDL-C were observed. The associations between MVPA status and cardiometabolic disease risk factors as well as metabolic syndrome were determined using multiple logistic regression. RESULTS For the waist circumference, SBP, DBP, MBP, visceral adiposity, triglyceride, and a surrogate estimate of insulin resistance, the Q1 and Q2 groups had higher means compared with the Q3 and Q4 groups. HDL-C was higher in the Q3 and Q4 groups compared to the Q1 and Q2 groups. Odds ratios for cardiometabolic disease risk factors and metabolic syndrome decreased in a curvilinear manner with the increasing quartile of MVPA. CONCLUSIONS Adults with higher MVPA participation were strongly associated with cardiometabolic disease risk factors and metabolic syndrome.
