Health Tip: Understanding Metabolic Syndrome

Feb. 27 -- (HealthDay News) -- Metabolic syndrome is a group of factors that combine to increase a person's risk of coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes and other diseases, including stroke.

The American Heart Association offers this list of criteria for metabolic syndrome:

• Excess fat around the abdomen.
• High triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol and high LDL cholesterol.
• High blood pressure.
• Difficulty processing insulin.
• High levels of fibrinogen or plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 in the blood.
• High blood levels of C-reactive protein.