Insulin, lipid profiles and measures of fatness in Taiwanese women in relation to duration of residence in Australia.

This study investigated the relationships between measures of fatness and blood insulin and lipids in Taiwanese females living in Taiwan (n=97) or Australia (n=100), and examined the effect of length of residence in Australia on these relationships. Fasting glucose and lipids were determined by Reflotron and fasting insulin using Microparticle Enzyme Immunoassay; insulin resistance (IR) was identified by HOMA. There were no significant inter-country differences in crude plasma insulin or HOMA-IR between Taiwan and Australia (51.7+/-42.2 vs. 45.0+/-29.0 pmol/L and 1.43+/-1.21 vs. 1.29+/-1.00, respectively, all p> 0.05), but when insulin and HOMA-IR were adjusted for waist circumference, they were greater in Taiwan (45.7+/-1.6 vs. 38.0+/-1.6 pmol/L and 1.26+/-1.59 vs. 1.13+/-1.59, respectively, all p< 0.05). Subjects living in Australia greater than 5 years had higher insulin and HOMA-IR values than those with less than 5 years residence (50.0+/-32.3 vs. 32.4+/-10.5 pmol/L and 1.45+/-1.00 vs. 0.90+/-0.28, respectively, all p< 0.01), even after adjustment for all measures of fatness. Subjects in Australia > 5 years have 6 (CI, 1.3-27.9) times the risk of having insulin > 50 pmol/L; the increased risk being confined to generally and/or centrally obese women. Measures of central obesity and general obesity were positively associated with HOMA-IR in both countries (r = 0.23, p< 0.05 and 0.27 p< 0.01, Taiwan, 0.43 and 0.43, both p< 0.01, Australia). Taiwanese females living in Australia initially appear to have a more favorable state of IR than those in Taiwan, but insulin resistance is associated with length of residence in Australia, particularly among the obese.