Higher Prevalence of Insulin Resistance Among Asian Americans Despite Lower Body Mass Index

Background: This study aims to identify racial/ethnic differences in the relationship between BMI and insulin resistance across Asian American subgroups (Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese), Mexicans, non-Hispanic blacks (NHBs), and non-Hispanic whites (NHWs) in a large, mixed payer ambulatory care setting in northern California. Study Design: This cross-sectional study examined electronic health records of patients aged 18 years or older from 2000-2012. Insulin resistance was indicated by TG/HDL ratio>3. Overweight or obesity was defined as BMI≥25. Results: Although Asian Americans had the lowest rate of overweight and obesity, they had the highest prevalence of insulin resistance in both normal weight (19%, 9,262 of 49,981) and overweight/obese groups (43%, 15,742 of 36,496), followed by Mexicans (normal: 12%, 197 of 1,590; overweight: 39%, 2,106 of 5,377), NHWs (normal: 9%, 6,271 of 65,921; overweight: 32%, 33,475 of 103,695) and NHBs (normal: 6%, 46 of 716; overweight: 16%, ...