Variation of fasting plasma glucose, insulin, and insulin resistance in Thai adults according to the new BMI criteria for Asians

Abstract

For a group of 73 males and 247 females, being health-conscious and from the lower middle class of Bangkok, with various degrees of the nutritional status defined by the new criteria for Asians, the relationship of anthropometric indicators and the plasma lipid status to fasting glucose, fasting plasma insulin, and the homeostasis model assessment for insulin-resistance (HOMA-IR) has been studied. For assessing differences among groups either the Mann-Whitney U-test or the Kruskal-Wallis analysis of variance for multiple comparisons were applied. Multivariate regression models were computed to assess variation of glucose, insulin, and the HOMA-IR due to the nutritional status and serum lipids. A significant increase in fasting plasma glucose for both sexes and for females for the HOMA-IR models could be observed for the group with a body-mass index (BMI) range of 23 to less than 25. Insulin concentrations and HOMA-IR correlated for both sexes, especially with BMI and hip circumference, while the variation of fasting plasma glucose is less dependent on anthropometric nutritional indicators in comparison to insulin and HOMA-IR. Only the lipid status of females weakly correlated with insulin and HOMA-IR. © Hogrefe & Huber Publishers.