To analyse whether dynapenic abdominal obesity is a risk factor for Metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its components in individuals 50 years of age or older.

A longitudinal study was conducted with an eight-year follow-up.

Representative sample of community-dwelling participants of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA).

3,952 individuals free of MetS at baseline.

Dynapenic abdominal obesity was defined based on waist circumference (> 102 cm for men and > 88 cm for women) and grip strength (< 26 kg for men and < 16 kg for women). The participants were classified as non-abdominally obese/non-dynapenic (NAO/ND - reference group), abdominally obese/non-dynapenic (AO/ ND), non-abdominally obese/dynapenic (NAO/D) and abdominally obese/dynapenic (AO/D). The outcome was the incidence of MetS based on the presence of three or more of the following criteria: hypertriglyceridemia, hyperglycaemia, low HDL cholesterol, arterial hypertension or body mass index ≥ 30 kg/m2 throughout eight-year follow-up. Additionally, the incidence of each component of MetS was also analyzed. Poisson regression models were run and controlled for sociodemographic, behavioural and clinical variables.

The mean age of the participants was 65 years and 55% were women. The prevalence of AO/ND, NAO/D and AO/D were 35.3, 4.3 and 2.2%, respectively. At the end of follow-up 558 incident cases of MetS were recorded. The adjusted model demonstrated that although abdominal obesity was a risk factor for MetS (IRR: 2.26; 95% CI: 1.87–2.73), the IRR was greater in AO/D individuals (IRR: 3.34; 95% CI: 2.03–5.50) compared with ND/NAO group. Furthermore, ND/AO was a risk factor for incidence of hypertriglyceridemia (IRR: 1.27; 95% CI: 1.06–1.52), hyperglycaemia (IRR: 1.41; 95% CI: 1.18–1.69), low HDL cholesterol (IRR: 1.70; 95% CI: 1.32–2.19) and BMI ≥ 30 kg/ m² (IRR: 2.58; 95% CI: 2.04–3.26) while D/AO was a risk factor for hyperglycaemia (IRR: 1.78; 95% CI: 1.02–3.10), low HDL cholesterol (IRR: 2.36; 95% CI: 1.10–5.08), and BMI ≥ 30 kg/m² (IRR: 2.79; 95% CI: 1.38–5.62).

Dynapenic abdominal obesity increases the risk of MetS, with a higher IRR compared to obesity alone. The understanding of this synergic action could guide specific clinical strategies, enabling the prevention of metabolic changes that can lead to cardiovascular disease, disability and death.