Those with a family history of Type-2 diabetes are more prone to metabolic syndrome, now increasingly recognised as a silent killer. Metabolic syndrome is a combination of health factors, including obesity and hypertension, which may lead to stroke and cardiac arrest.
A team of Indian researchers, comprising anthropologists Mithun Das, Susil Pal and Arnab Ghosh from Kolkata, found that people with a family history of Type-2 diabetes are relatively more susceptible to metabolic syndrome. They suggest that family history, thus, could be used as a tool for genomic studies to unravel several health mysteries associated with diabetes and metabolic syndrome. It could also be used as a predictive tool for early diagnosis and prevention of metabolic syndrome in India, which would help assess and successfully manage cardiovascular diseases.
About 450 persons, including 257 men, were studied as part of the research. “Evidence suggests that family history by itself is most useful in predicting the disease when there are multiple family members affected, the relationship among relatives is close, and disease is premature,” the research team said.
According to them, family history information can be used to personalise health messages, which are potentially more effective than standardised health messages, in promoting healthy lifestyles. The research team said that the individuals with a history of both parents affected from diabetes had significantly higher body mass index, waist circumference, waist-hip ratio, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure and fasting blood glucose than those having no family history of type 2 diabetes.