"More obesity than genetic prediction, triple risk of type 2 diabetes"
Nov 07, 2024
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In particular, those who were more obese than genetic prediction among the British population had a 61% increased risk of type 2 diabetes than those who were less obese, and this risk was tripled in the Korean population. Even at normal weight, the importance of lifestyle management should not be overlooked, and weight management strategies should be established considering individual genetic obesity to prevent diabetes.
On the 7th, a research team led by Professor Kwak Soo-heon of the Department of Endocrine Metabolism at Seoul National University Hospital and Professor Lee Tae-min of the Department of Circulatory Medicine at Gangnam Center announced the results of analyzing the risk of Type 2 diabetes based on the difference between genetic BMI and actual BMI based on clinical data of 450,000 people at home and abroad.
Adult diabetes (type 2 diabetes) is a disease in which blood sugar is abnormally high due to poor insulin secretion ability or function that controls blood sugar. Obesity is a major risk factor for the disease, and the prevalence of diabetes is also increasing as the obese population increases worldwide. The degree of obesity is evaluated by body mass index (BMI) obtained by dividing body weight (kg) by the square of height (m).
However, because BMI varies by population group, it was difficult to accurately predict the risk of type 2 diabetes with the level of obesity evaluated by BMI. In particular, compared to Europeans, East Asians tended to develop type 2 diabetes even in low-weight populations with low BMI.
In order to accurately predict the risk of type 2 diabetes due to obesity, the research team calculated a 'Genetic BMI', which means a prediction of innate obesity levels based on DNA WGS data. We then assumed that the difference between genetic BMI and actually measured BMI was associated with type 2 diabetes risk and verified this in the UK cohort (UK Biobank 383,160) and the Korean cohort (KoGES 74,233).
The results showed that the greater the actual BMI than the genetic BMI, i.e., the more obese actually than genetically predicted, the greater the risk of type 2 diabetes. Conversely, a tendency to decrease the risk of type 2 diabetes was observed when the actual BMI was smaller than the genetic BMI.
In addition, the research team analyzed the study subjects by cohort by dividing them into 1st to 5th quartiles (the actual BMI is larger in the 1st quartile, and the genetic BMI is larger in the 5th quartile).
As a result, actual BMI versus genetic prediction was significantly associated with type 2 diabetes risk in common in European and East Asian populations. In the UK cohort, the first quartile group had a 61% higher risk of type 2 diabetes compared to the fifth quartile group. In the Korean cohort, the first quartile group had an approximately threefold increased risk of type 2 diabetes, and for women, this risk increased by approximately fourfold, indicating a more pronounced association.
Additionally, only the Korean cohort was analyzed, and the larger the actual BMI than the genetic BMI, the higher the insulin resistance. When insulin resistance is high, blood sugar easily increases because cells in the body do not respond well to insulin that controls blood sugar. This may be one mechanism to explain the increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes in obese people than genetically predicted.
The research team emphasized that even if the BMI is low and not obese, it can be helpful to establish a personalized weight management strategy according to the genetically predicted obesity level to prevent diabetes and maintain metabolic health.
Professor Kwak Soo-heon said, "The results of this study are significant in that the difference between the genetically predicted BMI and the actually measured BMI can be an indicator for screening high-risk groups for diabetes.'" and "The realization of precision medical care that manages lifestyle habits according to individualized weight goals will effectively prevent diabetes.'
Meanwhile, the results of this study were published in the recent issue of the prestigious journal `Diabetes Care (IF;14.8)' in the field of diabetes.
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