Research
Hormonal
Black South African women exhibit higher degrees of insulin resistance and elevated free fatty acids compared to white women with similar BMI and body composition, predisposing them to type 2 diabetes despite potentially lower visceral fat.
Healthcare providers should prioritize screening for insulin resistance and diabetes in obese black women, even if their BMI appears moderate, as they are biologically predisposed to these conditions due to higher free fatty acid levels and insulin resistance.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
When compared with white urban women matched for BMI and body composition, black women have: A higher degree of insulin resistance... Higher post-absorptive free fatty acid and leptin concentrations with relative insulinopenia... Elevated free fatty acids in the black population may be partly explained by the reduced antilipolytic effect of insulin on adipocytes and may therefore predispose obese black patients to adverse clinical consequences, such as type 2 diabetes.
Why this rating
Based on multiple cited studies comparing metabolic profiles between ethnic groups.
Source
Obesity in South Africa: challenges for government and health professionals
Herculina S. Kruger et al. · Public Health Nutrition · 2005
DOI 10.1079/phn2005785
narrative_reviewCited 227×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Rapid urbanization and globalization in South Africa drive a nutritional transition characterized by increased consumption of high-fat, high-sugar processed foods and decreased physical activity, leading to a significant rise in obesity prevalence across all demographic groups.Good
- Effective obesity prevention and treatment require a multi-sectoral approach involving education, behavior change, political support, and community participation, rather than solely individual-level interventions.Moderate
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