Obesity is on the rise among patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D), according to a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. These patients also face an elevated risk of chronic kidney disease.
“Our study shows that obesity rates in adults with T1D are increasing and mirror the rates in the general adult population,” senior author Elizabeth Selvin, PhD, of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and John Hopkins University in Baltimore, said in a prepared statement. “Our research also highlights the high risk of kidney disease in people with type 1 diabetes. Kidney disease is often considered more common in people with type 2 diabetes (T2D), but our data shows adults with T1D actually had a higher risk of kidney disease than those with type 2.”
Selvin et al. examined data from 4,060 patients with T1D and 135,458 patients with T2D from the Geisinger Health System in Pennsylvania. All patients were treated from 2004 to 2018.
Patients with T1D tended to be younger than T2D patients, (39 vs. 62 years of age).
Overall, the authors found, obesity has been increasing among T1D patients over time. The obesity rate among this population was 32.6% in 2002, but 36.8% in 2018. Obesity among T2D patients, on the other hand, has remained stable at approximately 60%.
The team also noted that patients with T1D tended to be have a much younger median age than patients with T2D (39 years old vs. 62 years old).
In addition, looking at estimated glomerular filtration rates (eGFRs), after making adjustments for age, low eGFR was more common among T1D patients (16.2%) than T2D patients (9.3%).
Obesity was also specifically linked with an increased risk of low eGFR among both T1D and T2D patients.
“Our results highlight the need for interventions to prevent weight gain and end-stage kidney disease in people with T1D,” Selvin added.
Read the full study here.