Effects of Psychological and Lifestyle Factors on Metabolic Syndrome Following the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Accident: the Fukushima Health Management Survey
Takahashi, A.; Ohira, T.; Okazaki, K.; Yasumura, S.; Sakai, A.; Maeda, M.; Yabe, H.; Hosoya, M.; Ohtsuru, A.; Kawasaki, Y.; Shimabukuro, M.; Kazama, J.; Hashimoto, S.; Watanabe, K.; Nakano, H.; Hayashi, F.; Ohto, H.; Kamiya, K.; Ohira, H.
Journal of Atherosclerosis and Thrombosis 27(9): 1010-1018
2020
ISSN/ISBN: 1880-3873
PMID: 32009075
DOI: 10.5551/jat.52225
Accession: 069772981
The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident dramatically changed the lifestyle of residents who lived near the plant. We evaluated the association of metabolic syndrome (MetS) with specific lifestyle- and disaster-related factors in residents following the accident. This cross-sectional study included 20,920 residents who underwent both the Comprehensive Health Check and the Mental Health and Lifestyle Survey from June 2011 to March 2012. Associations between MetS and lifestyle- and disaster-related factors, including psychological distress (post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD]), were estimated using logistic regression analysis, adjusted for demographic and lifestyle factors, in 2019. MetS was present in 30.4% of men and 11.5% of women. There were significant differences in smoking, drinking status, and PTSD prevalence between subjects with and without MetS. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that age, quitting smoking, and low physical activity were significantly associated with MetS. Moreover, PTSD and light to moderate drinking were also significantly associated with MetS in women. Lifestyle- and disaster-related factors, including PTSD, were associated with MetS among subjects who lived near the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident.