Global burden of disease attributable to metabolic risk factors in adolescents and young adults aged 15-39, 1990-2021

Abstract

Background: Metabolic risk factors are a significant cause of global burden among adolescents and young adults, but there is a lack of attention to the burden attributable to these metabolic risk factors globally.

Aims: This study aims to provide comprehensive estimates of five important metabolic risk factors and the attributable disease burden in people aged 15-39 years from 1990 to 2021, based on the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) database.

Methods: Global total deaths and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) were used to describe the burden attributable to five common metabolic risk factors, including high fasting plasma glucose (FPG), high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high systolic blood pressure (SBP), high body mass index (BMI), and kidney dysfunction, in adolescents and young adults. The estimated annual percentage changes (EAPC) of DALYs were utilized to depict the trends from 1990 to 2021.

Results: From 1990 to 2021, the DALY rates attributable to all metabolic risk factors showed a globally significant upward trend, with EAPC reaching 33.0 % (27.4-38.7). Compared to females, males had a heavier burden and a more significant increase in deaths and DALYs attributable to metabolic risk factors. High BMI and high FPG have become the top two metabolic risk factors in 2021, with summary exposure variables (SEV) rising by 84.2 % and 53.6 %, respectively. Low-middle socio-demographic index (SDI), middle SDI, and high SDI regions experienced upward regional trends in DALY rates, while low SDI regions remained stable. Among 204 countries and territories, 101 (49.5 %) showed a significant increase in DALY rates, as indicated by the EAPC.

Conclusions: There is a substantial global burden attributable to metabolic risk factors in adolescents and young adults in 2021, especially high BMI and high FPG. This calls for further investigation and intervention to address this emerging trend.

Keywords: Adolescents and young adults; Global disease burden; Metabolic risk factors.