Asian Scientist (Jul. 2, 2013) – Researchers have discovered that people of different ethnicity have differing abilities to release and react to insulin.
In their study, published in Diabetes Care, the researchers studied over 3,800 individuals of African, Caucasian, and East Asian descent.
The results show that healthy subjects of all ethnic groups were able to maintain a normal glucose level, but did so in different ways.
The researchers found that Africans tend to have lower insulin sensitivity. However, they appear to compensate for this by releasing larger quantities of insulin.
Among those of East Asian origin, the reverse appears to be the case. They have very good insulin sensitivity but have a poorer ability to release more insulin if it is needed.
Caucasians fall somewhere between the two extremes. Both insulin release and insulin sensitivity are affected.
The findings seem to be consistent with clinical observations: East Asians are more prone to developing diabetes, a condition that is associated with lack of insulin. Lower insulin release in East Asians may be responsible for this elevated diabetes incidence.
The researchers are still investigating the genetic and physiological reasons for this difference in insulin sensitivity.
The article can be found at: Kodama et al. (2013) Ethnic Differences in the Relationship Between Insulin Sensitivity and Insulin Response: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
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Source: Lund University; Photo: leafbug/Flickr.
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