Association between Sarcopenia and Diabetes according to Age in Korean Adults

Abstract

Background: Diabetes is a major health care concern in Korea. Individuals with sarcopenia could be at an increased risk for diabetes. The purpose of this study was to determine whether sarcopenia is associated with impaired fasting glucose, diabetes, and insulin resistance according to age in patients with and without obesity. Methods: We used the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data from 2008 to 2010. The data for 15,467 nonpregnant adults aged ≥20 years were analyzed. Sarcopenia was defined as the appendicular skeletal muscle mass divided by body weight of <1 standard deviation below the sex-specific mean for young adults. The subjects were divided into 4 groups based on their obesity and sarcopenia status. They were further divided according to age into two groups (20–59 years, ≥60 years). Results: According to the age-stratified analyses, sarcopenia in the non-obese group was associated with impaired fasting glucose (odds ratio [OR], 1.57; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.17–2.10) and diabetes (OR, 2.11; 95% CI, 1.53–2.89) in adults aged ≥60 years, but not in adults aged <60 years. Sarcopenia showed a significant association with hemostatic model assessment–insulin resistance for both the non-obese and obese group regardless of age (P<0.05). Conclusion: Sarcopenia is significantly associated with impaired fasting glucose, diabetes, and insulin resistance in Korean adults. Further research is needed to develop interventions for prevention of sarcopenia.