Obesity and type 2 diabetes

Abstract

Obesity and diabetes are emerging pandemics in the 21st century. Both are major public health problems throughout the world and are associated with significant, potentially life-threatening comorbidities. A strong association exists between obesity and type 2 diabetes. The increase in the prevalence of diabetes parallels that of obesity. Some experts call this dual epidemic diabesity. Not all subjects with type 2 diabetes are obese, and many obese subjects do not have diabetes, but most of the subjects with type 2 diabetes are overweight or obese. A significant number of obese individuals have diabetes. Both obesity and type 2 diabetes feature insulin resistance and similar atherogenic lipid profiles such as increased triglycerides and decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). The genetic basis of human obesity predisposing individuals to insulin resistance and development of type 2 diabetes is multigenic rather than monogenic.