Influence of Obesity and Family History of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus on Serum Ferritin and Insulin Levels in Young Adults

Aim: Obesity and family history of Type 2 Diabetes mellitus are the major risk factors for the development of type 2 Diabetes mellitus in youth. The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between serum ferritin and insulin resistance in healthy young obese with and without family history of type 2 Diabetes mellitus.

Place and Duration of Study: Department of Biochemistry, Rajarajeswari Medical College and Hospital, Kambipura, Bangalore, Karnataka, India, for eight months period in the year 2012.

Material and Methods: A small group study was undertaken in 90 students who were in the age group of 17-22 years. The study population was divided into two groups based on body mass index, Group I /non-obese group (n=46) and Group II/ overweight & obese group (n=44). Fasting and postprandial blood glucose, Serum ferritin, serum insulin and lipid parameters were estimated and Homeostasis Model Assessment-Insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) was calculated for all the ninety students.

Results: Statistically significant differences in Total cholesterol (p=0.05), Triglycerides (p=0.05), serum insulin (p<0.01) and HOMA (p<0.01) were observed between the two groups. Mean serum ferritin values were increased in group II (overweight/obese) but not statistically significant. Serum insulin and serum ferritin showed a significant correlation with BMI for the whole study group.

Serum ferritin and insulin levels significantly correlated with waist to hip ratio in students with family history of Type 2 Diabetes mellitus as against individuals without family history. 59% of the obese students with family history of Diabetes mellitus had insulin resistance.

Conclusion: Our study has shown that a significant proportion of obese students with family history of type 2 diabetes mellitus had insulin resistance and elevated levels of ferritin, highlighting the importance of early screening for obesity associated co morbidities like metabolic syndrome, Type 2 Diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular diseases in these individuals.