Type 2 diabetes: unravelling the interaction between genetic predisposition and lifestyle

Excerpt

The high concordance rate of type 2 diabetes in monozygotic twins, the increased risk of diabetes in the offspring of affected parents and the difference in the prevalence of diabetes between various ethnic groups suggest a high heritability for this disorder [1]. On the other hand, modern societies are characterised by intense urbanisation, which is linked to tremendous environmental and behavioural changes: physical inactivity, an energy-dense diet, psychosocial stress and exposure to environmental pollutants [1‐3]. The descriptive epidemiology of type 2 diabetes suggests that the interaction between genetic susceptibility and these modern lifestyle factors, as well as environmental risk factors, is critical to the development of the disease [1]. …