Men Lead In Diabetes Risk

New research shows that men are at a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes than women. The reason behind this was due to the fact that men do not have to gain as much weight as women in order to have the metabolic condition.

The study, which was conducted by a team of scientists from Glasgow University, looked at data from 51,920 Scottish men and 43,137 Scottish women. The results showed that men contracted diabetes even though their body mass index was lower than the women's. This also proved to be the case in many other places around the world.

Besides having a higher weight, other risk factors such as ethnicity, age and genetics also played a part in the results.

Out of the male participants in the study, the average body mass index was 31.83 at the time that they received their diagnosis of having diabetes. For the women, the body mass index was slightly higher at 33.69. The scientists also discovered that the younger the age of the participants, the more pronounced the difference in body mass index.

The researchers believe that the difference can be traced to how men carry excess fat differently than women. Men have a tendency to gain additional weight in their stomach and liver area first versus women who carry their weight lower in the hips.

The lead researcher in the study, Naveed Sattar, from the Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences commented about the problem.

“Previous research has indicated that middle-aged men are at a higher risk of developing diabetes than women and one possible explanation is that men have to gain less weight than women to develop the condition,” said Sattar.

Source: Diabetes.co.uk