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Greater abdominal, thigh muscle mass lowers diabetes risk in normal-weight women
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Older, normal-weight women with greater muscle mass in the abdomen and thigh have a lower risk for incident diabetes, whereas women with overweight and greater muscle mass are at increased risk for the disease, study findings show.
“While overweight women will likely see the greatest health benefits from losing excess fat, normal-weight women — who may underestimate their risk of diabetes — might improve their metabolic health by building muscle and increasing resistance training,” Britta A. Larsen, PhD, assistant professor of family medicine and public health at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, told Endocrine Today.
Larsen and colleagues analyzed data from 2,166 adults aged 70 to 79 years participating in the Health, Aging and Body Composition (Health ABC) study who were free of diabetes at baseline in 1997-1998. Researchers measured waist and thigh circumference and used CT and DXA scanning to measure abdominal and thigh muscle area and total body lean mass, respectively. Strength was quantified by grip and knee extensions.
Britta A. Larsen
Within the cohort, there were 265 cases of incident diabetes (12.2%) during a mean 11.3 years of follow-up (135 women).
Researchers found a significant interaction with BMI category (normal weight vs. overweight/obesity) for both abdominal muscle (P = .001) and thigh muscle (P = .007), and the interaction with total lean mass approached statistical significance (P = .06).
In fully adjusted models, normal-weight women had a 37% lower risk for incident diabetes per standard deviation of abdominal muscle area (HR = 0.37; 95% CI, 0.17-0.83) vs. a 23% increased risk for diabetes for women with overweight (HR = 1.23; 95% CI, 0.98-1.54). For thigh muscle, normal-weight women experienced a 58% lower risk for diabetes after multivariable adjustment (HR = 0.58; 95% CI, 0.27-1.27) vs. a 28% increased risk for diabetes in women with overweight or obesity (HR = 1.28; 95% CI, 1-1.64).
Researchers found no significant interactions between muscle mass area and weight status in any models for men; there were no significant interactions between strength measures and weight status in men or women.
“This study was not a randomized trial, so we need to interpret the data cautiously,” Larsen said. “We know that normal-weight women with more muscle are less likely to develop diabetes; however, we won’t know for sure if muscle is actually responsible for this effect until we complete a randomized trial to build muscle in older women.” – by Regina Schaffer
For more information:
Britta A. Larsen, PhD, can be reached at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, Office 266A, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093; email: blarsen@ucsd.edu.
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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