A recently published study indicates that grip strength may be an early indicator of Type 2 diabetes.
In the findings, which were published recently in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, researchers were able to pinpoint consistent grip strength cut points in relation to patients' weight, age group and gender. The large study was composed of a nationally representative sample of participants. They were prescreened for chronic conditions such as hypertension, according to a press release.
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Research has not found a reliable way to assess how muscular weakness may be associated with Type 2 diabetes in adults who otherwise appear healthy. However, muscle weakness is known to be linked to Type 2 diabetes in adults who otherwise appear healthy.
“As the type 2 diabetes patient population continues to increase in the United States, diagnosing this disease in its early stages is becoming increasingly more important for preventing complications caused by blood vessel damage associated with diabetes,” lead investigator Elise C. Brown of the department of public and environmental wellness at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, said in a statement.
“Our study identifies the levels of handgrip strength/weakness that correlate with T2DM in otherwise healthy men and women, according to their body weights and ages. Healthcare providers now have a reliable test to detect it early before such complications set in,” she continued.
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For the study, researchers reviewed survey data from the 2011-2012 and 2013-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to establish normalized grip strength — that is, a grip strength relative to body weight — cut points for the risk of Type 2 diabetes. To determine hand and forearm strength, researchers used inexpensive portable handgrip dynamometer devices. After controlling for waist circumference, sociodemographics including race, age and education, as well as lifestyle factors including alcohol use and sedentary behavior, researchers pinpointed the grip strength levels of otherwise healthy, at-risk patients.
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For women between ages 50 and 80, the cut point is 0.49. So if a 60-year-old woman who weighed 198 pounds had a combined grip strength from left and right hands of about 95 pounds, 0.478 would be her normalized grip strength. Since that number is less than 0.49, it indicates the woman is at risk for diabetes and further screening is needed.
“Given the low cost, minimal training requirement and quickness of the assessment, the use of the normalized grip strength cut points in this paper could be used in routine health screenings to identify at-risk patients and improve diagnosis and outcomes,” Brown said. “This type of impactful research can make a difference for practitioners and individuals and is a key focal point of what Oakland University is all about. We are trying to improve the health and well-being of individuals.”
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