Type 2 diabetes often develops differently amongst men and women, a new study has revealed.
Scientists from Concordia University in Canada have found that the onset of type 2 diabetes alters in men and women due to fat being stored differently in each gender.
The positioning of fat tissue can trigger the development of type 2 diabetes, the research has shown.
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Main author, Dr Kerri Delaney said: “There are many different theories about how diabetes develops, and the one that we explore posits that different regions of fat tissue contributes to disease risk differently.
“So, the big question is, how do the different depots uniquely contribute to its development and is this contribution different in men and women.”
Worldwide cases of type 2 diabetes have soared over the last 40 years, with the number of people living with the condition going from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014, the research has reported.
During the study, the academics examined nearly 200 scientific documents on the human body to assess how fat can trigger the development of type 2 diabetes.
According to the researchers, a large amount of abdominal fat can cause type 2 diabetes, with women’s fat located under the surface of the skin (subcutaneous fat) and men’s around the central body organs (visceral fat).
Previous studies have found that fat cells tend to get bigger in men, causing the fat tissue to expand.
Meanwhile, fat tissue grows in women due to the number of fat cells increasing, according to prior reports.
The researchers found that the differences in fat cells amongst males and females cause type 2 diabetes to develop differently in the two genders.
In addition, they found that hormones impacted the onset of type 2 diabetes, with men more likely to develop the condition earlier than women.
Senior academic, Professor Sylvia Santosa said: “Currently, the treatment of diabetes is similar for men and women.
“If we understood the differences between them better, we could consider these mechanisms in recommending treatments to men and women based on how diabetes medications work.”
The paper has been published in the journal Obesity Reviews.
