Type 2 diabetes in East Asians: similarities and differences with populations in Europe and the United States

Abstract

There is an epidemic of diabetes in Asia. Type 2 diabetes develops in East Asian patients at a lower mean body mass index (BMI) compared with those of European descent. At any given BMI, East Asians have a greater amount of body fat and a tendency to visceral adiposity. In Asian patients, diabetes develops at a younger age and is characterized by early β cell dysfunction in the setting of insulin resistance, with many requiring early insulin treatment. The increasing proportion of young-onset and childhood type 2 diabetes is posing a particular threat, with these patients being at increased risk of developing diabetic complications. East Asian patients with type 2 diabetes have a higher risk of developing renal complications than Europeans and, with regard to cardiovascular complications, a predisposition for developing strokes. In addition to cardiovascular–renal disease, cancer is emerging as the other main cause of mortality. While more research is needed to explain these interethnic differences, urgent and concerted actions are needed to raise awareness, facilitate early diagnosis, and encourage preventive strategies to combat these growing disease burdens.

Trend Analysis in the Prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes According to Risk Factors among Korean Adults: Based on the 2001~2009 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Data

“…This finding concurs with a report that East Asians tend to have a higher prevalence of diabetes at a lower BMI compared to Americans and Europeans [29]. Other studies have found similar higher prevalence rates of diabetes at lower BMIs among Asians [30].…”

Surgery in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus

“…Scopinaro et al (40) have done BpD for the patients with the same range of BMI and used the same definition of remission of T2DM. Remission rate was 67%, much lower than that reported by Lee et al This difference may be partially explained by the fact that Asian population has a higher amount of body and visceral fat at any given BMI as compared to Europeans (41). However, the findings of this study should be confirmed by other RCTs in different populations.…”

Diabetes in Asia and the Pacific: Implications for the Global Epidemic

“…Similar risk factors for T2DM have been identified in Europids and in Asian populations (5,6,54). Many of these risk factors are closely linked to economic development and the increasing urbanization seen across much of Asia and the Pacific.…”

“…Studies that have examined the association between adiposity and diabetes in multiethnic cohorts noted that Asians develop diabetes at a considerably lower BMI compared with Europids (54,68). This is ascribed to visceral adiposity in Asian populations (69).…”