Poor Muscle Health Along With Obesity May Significantly Raise Type 2 Diabetes Risk: Study
A combination of poor muscle health and excess body fat may substantially increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to a new study published in the journal Diabetes Care. Researchers found that individuals with sarcopenic obesity—a condition marked by both obesity and reduced muscle mass and strength—face a considerably higher diabetes risk than those affected by either condition alone. The research, led by Zhongyang Guan, a PhD candidate at Curtin University in Australia, analyzed health data from 479,607 participants in the UK Biobank who were free of diabetes at the start of the study. During an average follow-up period of more than 14 years, nearly 32,950 participants developed type 2 diabetes. According to the findings, people with sarcopenic obesity were more than 3.5 times as likely to develop type 2 diabetes compared to individuals with a healthy body composition. They also had a 19% higher risk than people with obesity alone and a 91% higher risk than those with only sarcopenia. The study revealed that nearly 15% of participants with sarcopenic obesity developed type 2 diabetes within 10 years, compared with around 11% of those with obesity alone and only 3% of individuals without obesity or sarcopenia. Researchers also observed that the association between sarcopenic obesity and diabetes was particularly pronounced among women and adults younger than 60 years. Guan noted that while excess body weight is widely recognized as a diabetes risk factor, the findings highlight that muscle health plays an equally important role in determining an individual’s risk. The authors concluded that evaluating both body fat and muscle health could improve the identification of people at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Senior author Professor Mario Siervo from Curtin University’s Faculty of Health Sciences said healthcare providers should consider assessing muscle health alongside body weight. He added that maintaining muscle strength through regular physical activity, resistance training, and healthy lifestyle habits may help reduce the growing burden of type 2 diabetes, particularly as obesity rates continue to rise and populations age. Source: PTI
