Body Composition and Diabetes

Abstract

Representative body composition related to metabolic diseases in our body include fats and muscles, and accumulation of abdominal fats and loss of muscles caused by aging are the main causes of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Such changes in body composition vary according to sex and age; in particular, women exhibit significant changes, especially during menopause. Therefore it is necessary to determine new anthropometric indicators that reflect differences in muscles and fats mass changes caused by aging, as well as their distributions, and to establish diagnostic criteria for stratifying the risks of metabolic diseases in both men and women. This article summarizes the underlying mechanisms and recent epidemiological findings that support how muscles decrease and visceral fats increase the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus.