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Young, black women more likely to have unhealthy abdominal fat than Hispanics
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New data suggest that accumulation of visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue is greatest in young adulthood for blacks and Hispanics.
The IRAS Family Study examined five-year changes in visceral and subcutaneous adiposity in a large minority cohort using CT. The study included 289 blacks and 844 Hispanics aged 20 to 69, grouped by age in 10-year increments. Researchers measured visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue at baseline from 1999 to 2002 and again in 2005 to 2007.
Young adults aged 20 to 29 had the largest five-year increase in measured adiposity, regardless of race/ethnicity or sex. Visceral adipose tissue increased by 18 cm in young black women vs. 12 cm in young Hispanic women. The increases were smaller among men: 13 cm for blacks and 7 cm for Hispanics.
Subcutaneous abdominal tissue increased 88 cm in young black women compared with 53 cm in young Hispanic women. Again, increases were smaller among both black (76 cm) and Hispanic (30 cm) men.
Overall, fat accumulation — subcutaneous or visceral — declined in older age groups.
“Our data my help to further identify unique populations at risk for type 2 diabetes and those for whom behavioral intervention might be most effective,” researcher Kristen G. Hairston, MD, MPH, assistant professor in the department of endocrinology and metabolism at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, said in a press release.
Hairston KG. Diabetes Care. 2009; doi:10.2337/dc09-0336.