Normal-Weight Diabetics Have Higher Death Rates Than Obese Diabetics
Thin or normal-weight adults diagnosed with type 2 diabetes have higher death rates than people who are overweight or obese at the time of diagnosis, a new study says.
Obesity can trigger off a variety of health complications like type 2diabetes, heart disease and inflammation. A few recent studies have shown that people who have a large body mass index can actually survive many complications better than people who have normal body mass index.
Medical Daily had earlier reported a study about the "obesity paradox" where being overweight or obese can actually save peoples' lives, especially if they've undergone heart surgery.
For the present study, researchers analyzed medical records of large study cohorts and found 2,625 U.S. men and women who developed diabetes during the study. Almost 10 percent of the study group had normal weight at the time of diagnosis.
They found that people who have developed type 2 diabetes and have a normal weight die at a faster rate than overweight people who have developed diabetes.
"It could be that this is a very unique subset of the population who are at a particularly high risk for mortality and diabetes, and it is possible that genetics is a factor with these individuals," said lead author Mercedes R. Carnethon, associate professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.
According to researchers, normal weight must not stop people from getting checked for diabetes, especially if they're over 40.
"Many times physicians don't expect that normal-weight people have diabetes when it is quite possible that they do and could be at a high risk of mortality, particularly if they are older adults or members of a minority group. If you are of a normal weight and have new-onset diabetes, talk to your doctor about controlling your health risks, including cardiovascular risk factors," Carnethon said.
The study is published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.