The objective of this thesis was to determine the association of leg length (LL), a marker of early childhood conditions, with metabolic abnormalities underlying type 2 diabetes. Utilizing data from a population at-risk for diabetes, the associations of LL with i) insulin
resistance (IR) and beta-cell dysfunction and ii) a continuous metabolic syndrome risk score (MetScore) were analyzed. Results showed that shorter LL was associated with IR and beta-cell dysfunction, and that the combination of short legs and large waist (a marker of adult obesogenic conditions) was associated with the greatest IR. Height, a marker of overall childhood conditions, was found to be inversely associated with the MetScore. Therefore, both adverse childhood conditions and early-late life mismatched conditions may increase the risk for diabetes through differing pathways. Improving childhood conditions (i.e.
nutritionally or economically) may be an important strategy to prevent diabetes.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:TORONTO/oai:tspace.library.utoronto.ca:1807/42975 |
| Date | 28 November 2013 |
| Creators | Johnston, Luke |
| Contributors | Hanley, Anthony James Gordon |
| Source Sets | University of Toronto |
| Language | en_ca |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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