Fig. 1Prevalence of obesity in the last 10 years (2009 to 2018). Obesity was defined as a body mass index equal to or higher than 25 kg/m2. Modified from the guidelines of Korean Society for the Study of Obesity [2].
Fig. 2Prevalence of risk factors in Korean adults.
Fig. 3Prevalence of diabetes by age and sex (2016). Diabetes was defined if they satisfied any of the following four criteria: (1) having been diagnosed with diabetes by a doctor, (2) currently taking anti-diabetic medications, (3) having a fasting plasma glucose ≥ 126 mg/dL, or (4) having a hemoglobin A1c level ≥6.5%. Modified from the guidelines of Korean Diabetes Association [3].
Fig. 4Management of risk factors in Korean adults.
Fig. 5Changes in the prevalence of hypertension by age and sex over time. Hypertension was defined as a blood pressure ≥140/90 mm Hg and/or taking anti-hypertensive medication. Modified from the guidelines of Korean Society of Hypertension [4].
Fig. 6Prevalence of dyslipidemia by age group in Korean adults. Dyslipidemia diagnosed in individuals who satisfied one of the three following criteria: a low-density lipoprotein cholesterol ≥160 mg/dL, a high-density lipoprotein cholesterol <40 mg/dL, or a triglyceride ≥200 mg/dL. Individuals taking any medications for dyslipidemia or who were previously diagnosed with dyslipidemia were also classified as having dyslipidemia. Modified from the guidelines of Korean Society of Lipid and Atherosclerosis [5].
Fig. 7Concurrent treatment of hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia in Korean adults. Modified from the guidelines of Korean Diabetes Association [3].
Table 1Take Home Message from the Fact Sheets of Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Korea
1. The prevalence of obesity gradually increased in all age groups over the past 10 years and overall prevalence was 35.7% in 2018. |
2. The prevalence of obesity in adults in their 20s, 30s, and 80s showed a significantly steeper increasing trend over the past 10 years than was observed in other age groups; the prevalence of obesity in their 50s and 60s was decreased. |
3. The prevalence of abdominal obesity significantly increased over the past 10 years in Korean adults, with prevalence rates of 23.8% in the total pop- ulation. |
4. Men in their 30s and 40s were the most severely threatened age groups in terms of the rate of increase in the prevalence of abdominal obesity. |
5. The prevalence of diabetes among adults 30 years or older was 14.4%; one in three (29.8%) Koreans 65 years or older had diabetes. |
6. The control rate of diabetes, defined by a hemoglobin A1c level <6.5%, was 25.1%. |
7. The prevalence of IFG among Korean adults 30 years or older was 25.3% in the total population. |
8. Eleven million Koreans were estimated to have hypertension, approximately 29% of Korean adults older than 30 years. |
9. The awareness, treatment, and control rates of hypertension steadily increased from 1998 to 2007; however, starting from 2007, the rates remained stagnant for 10 years. |
10. The prevalence of hypercholesterolemia in adults 30 years or older was found to be 19.9% in 2016; the prevalence increased from 14.4% in 2012 to 19.9% in 2016. |
11. The prevalence of dyslipidemia was 40.5% in the total population; the prevalence of high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in women in their 60s (39.9%) was higher both than that of women in any other age group and the prevalence among men in the same age group; the prevalence of hyper- triglyceridemia was 17.5% in the total population, with a much higher prevalence in men than in women (24.8% vs. 11.0%). |