Lower socio-economic status (SES) is significantly associated with metabolic syndrome (MS) prevalence, possibly affecting women more than men, although evidence in Spain is still limited. The present cross-sectional study analyzed the association between MS and SES by age and gender among 42,146 working adults living in the Balearic Islands (Spain). Prevalence was higher in men (9.4% by ATP-III; 12.3% by IDF) than women (3.8% by ATP-III; 5.7% by IDF) and in the lower social class (7.9% by ATP-III; 10.7% by IDF) than the higher (4.1% by ATP-III; 5.9% by IDF). The SES gradient in MS prevalence was larger in women (PR 95% CI: 3.38, 2.50-4.58 by ATP-III; 3.06, 2.43-3.86 by IDF) than in men (1.23, 1.06-1.41 by ATP-III; 1.15, 1.03-1.30 by IDF) and was already evident from early adulthood, reaching the highest ratio at the late stages of middle adulthood (4.34, 1.11-16.98). Among men, it was significant during the late stages of early adulthood only (1.80, 1.19-2.73). Lower SES influenced MS prevalence in both genders, however, women seemed more affected than men. From a public health perspective, SES could be strongly associated with the burden of MS; in an effort to reduce its prevalence, public health policies should focus on gender differences in socio-economic inequality and consider women with low socio-economic resources as a priority.
Keywords: metabolic syndrome; prevalence of metabolic syndrome; socioeconomic status; socioeconomic status gradient.