Association between the weight-adjusted waist index and type 2 diabetes mellitus: Evidence from the RaNCD study.

Abstract

Background: The weight-adjusted-waist index (WWI) emerges as a novel metric for assessing obesity, and this study aimed to determine the association between WWI and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis using data collected at the inception of the Ravansar Non-communicable Disease (RaNCD) cohort study in 2014. A total of 8901 participants aged 35-65 were included in the study. The WWI is calculated by dividing the waist circumference (WC) in centimeters by the square root of the weight in kilograms. Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the association between WWI and T2DM, adjusting for potential confounding variables.

Results: Individuals in the second quartile demonstrate a 56 % (OR: 1.56, 95 % CI: 1.23-1.99) higher odds of T2DM compared to those in first quartile. The odds of having T2DM was elevated in the third and fourth quartiles, with odds ratios of 1.81 (95 % CI: 1.43-2.20) and 2.15 (95 % CI: 1.71-2.71) respectively. After adjusting confounder variables, it is evident that the odds of diabetes in the second, third, and fourth quartiles of WWI has increased by 38 % (95 % CI: 1.07, 1.78), 47 % (95 % CI: 1.14, 1.91), and 43 % (95 % CI: 1.08, 1.89) respectively, compared to the first quartile (P trend = 0.001).

Conclusion: The results of the current study indicate that high levels of WWI are strongly associated to a higher risk of T2DM in Iranian adults. These study findings emphasize the significance of incorporating WWI into strategies for the prevention and management of T2DM.