Assessment of Eating Behavior and Genetic Risk Factors for Metabolic Syndrome

<b>Background</b>: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is influenced by behavioral and genetic factors, yet evidence on eating behavior patterns and related genetic polymorphisms in Central Asian populations remains limited. Aim: The aim of this study was to assess eating behaviors among adults with and without MetS and evaluate their associations with clinical indicators and ADIPOQ rs266729 and MC4R rs17782313 variants. <b>Methods</b>: A cross-sectional study of 200 adults (115 non-MetS, 85 MetS) was conducted using Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ), standardized clinical measurements, and PCR-RFLP genotyping. <b>Results</b>: Participants with MetS were older than non-MetS adults (52 vs. 47 years; <i>p</i> = 0.004) and had substantially higher systolic blood pressure (126 vs. 114 mmHg; <i>p</i> < 0.001), diastolic blood pressure (83 vs. 74 mmHg; <i>p</i> < 0.001), and BMI (32.2 vs. 25.9 kg/m²; <i>p</i> < 0.001). Waist circumference, hip circumference, triglycerides, total cholesterol, and LDL were also significantly higher, while HDL was lower (1.13 ± 0.40 vs. 1.58 ± 1.50 mmol/L; <i>p</i> = 0.008). DEBQ restrained, emotional, and external eating scores showed no differences between groups (all <i>p</i> > 0.05). Eating behavior distribution was similar (<i>p</i> = 0.291). ADIPOQ genotypes (CC/CG/GG) did not differ by MetS status (<i>p</i> = 0.227), nor did MC4R variants (<i>p</i> = 0.679). Among MetS participants, clinical indicators did not vary across eating behavior categories, and no associations were observed between eating behavior and either polymorphism. <b>Conclusions</b>: Despite clear clinical and metabolic differences between MetS and non-MetS groups, neither eating behavior patterns nor ADIPOQ and MC4R variants were associated with metabolic measures among MetS group.