Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a growing public health concern worldwide. It has been demonstrated that individuals with MetS are at an increased risk of cardiovascular events and diabetes. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of MetS and its components among Turkic and Kurds ethnic groups in a bi-ethnic (Turk and Kurd) population. This cross-sectional study is part of the national health transformation plan created in response to the emerging epidemic of non-communicable diseases (Iran’s Package of Essential Non-communicable Disease study), launched in 2014 in Naqadeh, Iran. In total, 3506 participants aged 30–70 years were randomly included in the study from urban and rural regions. Cardio-metabolic risk factors related to MetS diagnosis and other related sociodemographic factors were assessed for men and women in both the Turk and the Kurd population. Multivariate logistic regressions were applied to identify MetS -associated factors among both the Turk and the Kurd population. The mean (SD) age of the participants was 49.6 (12.3) years. Of the participants, 56.2% (n = 1969) were women, and 43.8% (n = 1537) were men. Three-fifths of the participants were Turk (60.3%, n = 1751). The overall prevalence of MetS was 37.05%, with a higher prevalence in women (49.8% versus 24.3% in men). The prevalence of MetS and its components among Turk people (41.6%) were significantly higher than that among Kurd people (33.9%) (p < 0.0001). In addition, the prevalence of MetS was higher among women, urban, and older people for both ethnicities. Strong associations were found between MetS prevalence and being older, being female, being overweight, being obese, having a higher waist-to-hip ratio, and having a history of diabetes and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the family for both Turks and Kurds. The raised waist circumference (WC) is the most prevalent MetS component for Turk men and women. Meanwhile, the most prevalent MetS component for Kurd participants is low high-density lipoprotein for women and a raised WC for men. Significant differences were found between Kurdish men and women for all components, except for a raised WC and a raised fasting blood glucose (p < 0.05). Because the Iranian population features multiple ethnicities, the recognition of the prevalence of MetS components is a major step in establishing intervention strategies for modifying cardio-metabolic risk factors based on the population ethnicities and their socio-demographic, cultural, and lifestyle factors. We recommend future studies for planning an efficient and sustainable health education and promotion program to halt MetS prevalence.

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Background: This article presents the most recent mortality data in West Azerbaijan Province (WAP) of Iran in 2016 based on selected characteristics, including age, sex, state of residence, and cause of death. Methods: After the local Ethics Committee approval, we obtained the data for this systematic database study from the local health registration office. The causes of death are processed following the International Classification of Diseases, tenth revision (ICD-10). The vital statistics were refined from the yearbooks of the National Organization for Civil Registration. Results: In 2016, a total of 14688 deaths were registered in the Health Death Registration System (HDRS) and 14622 in the Civil Death Registration System (CDRS) of WAP (~4% of Iran’s mortality). The Crude Mortality Rate (CMR) was 4.30 per 1000, showing an increase of 7.5% from the 2011 rate. Of the deceased, 56.9% were males, and 60% were attributed to urban areas. On average, men died 4 years earlier than women (61.2 vs 65.3 years, respectively). The major causes of death in 2016 remained the same as in 2011. Conclusion: The pattern of human mortality in WAP is comparatively consistent with the other regions of Iran except for the higher rate of neoplasms (19.6% compared to 10.7% of the country average) and the lower ratio of certain infectious and parasitic diseases (1% compared to 3.8% of the national average). There was a significant difference in registering the state of residence between HDRS and CDRS, which is highly recommended for further investigation in future studies.