The Best Predictor For Type 2 Diabetes

In this blog, I will be summarizing and analyzing a journal article which focused on topic of Type 2 Diabetes. Type 2 Diabetes or also known as adult onset diabetes has been a growing problem around the world. Some of the factors that leads to Type 2 Diabetes include obesity, sedentary lifestyles, and high energy dense foods. (ex.high fructose corn syrup in soft drinks). High blood glucose over time can cause blindness, heart disease, stroke, etc.

In this article, the main purpose was to figure out the strongest predictors for type 2 diabetes among males and females. Specifically, the researchers wanted to understand which factor of obesity contributes to a higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes. These predictors include waist circumference ratio, BMI (Body Mass Index), and abdominal obesity (visceral fat). They measured the sexes separately because they noticed the difference between the "styles" of obesity. Lower body obesity (gynoid or pear shaped) was much more prevalent among females while upper body obesity (android or apple shaped) was much more prevalent among males.

Methodology

This study was based in Korea and a total of 4,400 households were surveyed and an average of 20 households were selected for further interview and questionnaires. In the end, the final study sample consisted of 4,684 respondents, over the age of 30 and has completed a health examination. The latter was to exclude any participants who had a history of chronic diseases.

The subjects were tested for their blood glucose levels in the morning after an 8 hour fast. To be diagnosed a diabetic, your blood glucose level would have to exceed 126mL/dL. Furthermore, your considered to have abdominal obesity if your waist circumference exceeds 90cm for men or 80cm for women. Last but not least, your considered obese if your BMI was over 25.

Among the top indicators listed, the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve was used to determine which indicator was the strongest predictor for type 2 diabetes.

Results

In the end, it was noted that both men and women expressed different levels of fasting blood glucose based on their abdominal obesity alone (didn't include BMI). However, the final results showed that BMI and waist circumference as the strongest predictors for Type 2 Diabetes among women. On the other hand, waist circumference was the only strong predictor for type 2 diabetes among men.





References:

Paek, K.W., & Chun, K.H. (2010). Sex differences of type 2 diabetes affected by abdominal obesity versus overall obesity. Yonsei Med, 51(6), Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=5&hid=112&sid=dad25e19-ff10-48d9-9914-2a7d535f33f5%40sessionmgr114