Metabolic syndrome has declined, some risks persist

Compared to a decade ago, fewer Americans have a cluster of risk factors that together can signal heart troubles and diabetes down the line, according to a new study. But while so-called metabolic syndrome is declining, some of its components - including large waistlines and poor blood sugar control, which carry their own risks - are becoming more common, researchers found. "I don't think we're out of the woods yet," said Gary Liguori, who has studied metabolic syndrome at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga but wasn't involved in the new research. "It may be the incidence of diabetes is going to continue to go up," he told Reuters Health. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_137983.html