Global warming study caused more Type 2 diabetes patients

Physicians are studying the effects of climate change on diabetes
The negative impact of global climate change on our environment may well be familiar to most people by now. Researchers now found that the ever-warming soil will lead to increased cases of type 2 diabetes.

Researchers at Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands found in an investigation that global warming will increase the incidence of type 2 diabetes. The physicians published the results of their study in the journal "BMJ Open Open Diabetes Research & Care".

Many people today are suffering from diabetes. The ever-increasing temperatures due to global warming are leading to even more diabetes in the future. (Image: Andrey Popov / fotolia.com)

Increasing the global temperature by just one degree already has a big impact
Increasing the ambient temperature by just one degree Celsius will result in more than 100,000 new cases of type 2 diabetes in the United States alone, say the experts. The authors of the study further explained that so-called brown fat is activated over a period of a few cold days. There is a difference between brown and white fat. When brown fat is activated, it leads to an improvement in body sensitivity to insulin. This hormone helps convert sugar from food to energy.

Brown adipose tissue generates heat and maintains body temperature
The function of brown adipose tissue is to burn fat. Heat is generated to prevent body temperature from dropping due to exposure to cold, says author Lisanne Blauw of Leiden University Medical Center.

When heated, brown fat is not as active
We assume that brown fat plays an important role in the mechanism underlying an association between outside temperature and diabetes, the experts explain. In warmer climates, brown fat is less active, potentially leading to insulin resistance and diabetes.

At least part of the effect is related to the brown fat
Before moving to a colder area, it is important to note that this study can not demonstrate a direct cause-and-effect relationship between warmer temperatures and the development of type 2 diabetes, say the physicians. On the basis of the so-called brown fat hypothesis, however, we suspect that at least part of the effect can be explained by the activity of brown fat, according to the author Blauw.

More and more people in the world are suffering from diabetes
The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is rising rapidly around the world. In 2015, approximately 415 million people worldwide suffered from the disease. By the year 2040, this number is expected to rise to 642 million, the scientists say.

A longer cold improves insulin resistance
A recent study has already shown that people with type 2 diabetes with a moderate cold over a period of ten days, have improved insulin resistance. This means that those affected use insulin more efficiently, the researchers explain. The effect could be triggered by an increase in fat activity. Brown fat is most active in winter, with temperatures the coldest, the authors add.

Study analyzes data from 50 different U.S. States
For their current study, scientists studied adults' data in 50 U.S. States, along with Guam, Puerto Rico and U.S. Patents. Virgin Islands. The data were from the period from 1996 to 2009. The study team also looked at the World Health Organization (WHO) data on blood sugar levels and obesity rates in 190 countries.

In warmer areas of the world, people have increased insulin resistance
In the current study, we were able to prove that an increase in the outside temperature is associated with an increase in the number of new diabetes cases in the US, says the study author Blauw. Although the researchers did not have any information about diabetes diagnoses worldwide, they saw signs that people in warmer areas had increased insulin resistance.

Global warming has serious health implications
People need to understand that global warming can have a serious impact on our health, the authors explain. The results show that more people in countries with diabetes are affected by the average outside temperature, Blauw adds. The researchers' database is based on self-reported cases of diabetes, which could lead to overestimation or underestimation of diabetes rates, and further investigation is needed for a final assessment. (As)