Body size and shape and glycemic control among Maya women in rural Yucatán

Studies on relationships between aspects of physique and glucose physiology generally focus on clinical glucose tolerance or on fasting glucose or insulin assays showing glycemic status at the time of testing. Little work has examined the associations between body variables and glycemic control, or average past glucose levels in regular living conditions. The aim of this research was to investigate connections between body size and shape and glycemic control. The sample consists of 60 nondiabetic Maya women, ages 40-85 years, residing in 16 rural villages around Mérida, Yucatán. Body morphology was assessed through anthropometric and derived measures of size and shape, including indicators of fat distribution and general adiposity. Glycemic control was measured through microvenous samples analyzed for glycated blood proteins HbA(1c) and fructosamine to demonstrate average circulating glucose under customary living conditions during the previous several months and weeks. Four-variable regression models explain 17% of the variance in HbA(1c) and 25% of the variance in fructosamine. Arm circumference has the largest positive effect on HbA(1c), while weight has the greatest positive impact on fructosamine. The predictor with the largest negative effect on both glycated blood proteins is calf circumference. In general, variables reflecting overall adiposity and central adiposity demonstrate positive associations with HbA(1c) and fructosamine, whereas lean body measures exhibit negative associations. Findings support the value of glycated blood proteins and of less common anthropometric measures, such as calf circumference, in population research on morphological relations with glycemia.