- WASHINGTON (Reuters) - One
in three of all Americans has a condition called insulin resistance syndrome,
putting them at high risk of diabetes and heart disease, a panel of doctors
said on Tuesday.
-
- But diet and exercise can take care of the condition
in many if not most cases, and a few simple tests can tell doctors and
patients who is at most risk, the experts said.
-
- Insulin resistance syndrome, also known as metabolic
syndrome or syndrome X, refers to people whose bodies do not manage insulin
well. More and more people are developing the condition as the population
eats more and exercises less.
-
- If not dealt with, it can develop into diabetes as well
as heart disease, nonalcoholic fatty liver and perhaps some cancers such
as colon and ovarian cancer. It affects a growing number of adults and
children.
-
- On Tuesday a committee of experts from four top medical
organizations -- the American College of Endocrinology, American Association
of Clinical Endocrinologists, American Medical Association and the American
College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine -- issued official
guidance about how to diagnose the condition.
-
- "As the prevalence of insulin resistance syndrome
has skyrocketed 61 percent in the last decade, it is crucial that medical
professionals have consistent and definitive criteria to assess this serious
condition," Dr. Daniel Einhorn of the Scripps Whittier Institute for
Diabetes in La Jolla, California and co-chair of the panel, told a news
conference.
-
- "We feel that as many as one in three Americans
have this," Einhorn added in an interview.
-
- Einhorn said pediatricians are complaining that seven-
to ten-year-old children were developing metabolic syndrome, type-II diabetes
-- once only seen in adults -- and obesity.
-
- "We never saw this before," Einhorn said. "Pediatricians
are having to learn about adult medications."
-
- No single test can show who has insulin resistance syndrome
but measurements of weight, blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose tolerance
can. One quick check that people can make at home is waist circumference,
the experts said -- men with 40-inch waists and women with 35-inch waists
have a higher risk.
-
- Details are available on the Internet at <http://rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/nm/sc_nm/inlinks/*http://www.aace.com>
http://www.aace.com.
-
- Other indications a person may have insulin resistance
syndrome are polycystic ovary syndrome, which Einhorn believes may affect
up to one in 10 women and which can be marked by infertility, excess facial
hair and obesity.
-
- In addition there is a skin condition, acanthosis nigricans,
linked with the syndrome.
-
- What can patients do if diagnosed with insulin resistance?
-
- "It doesn't require draconian measures," Einhorn
said. Losing 5 percent to 10 percent of total body weight will help a good
deal -- and studies show that as little as 20 minutes of extra exercise
such as brisk walking, 5 days a week can help most people lose that much
weight.
-
- It is not necessary to cut out all sweets, he added.
And like many doctors, Einhorn does not believe claims that carbohydrates
are to blame for obesity.
-
- "It is not any one thing that's the culprit,"
Einhorn said. "It's not just the fast food. It's not just the pastries.
It's a combination of genetics and the diseases of modern living -- obesity
and sedentary living."
-
-
- Copyright © 2002 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited
without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable
for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance
thereon.
|