Anthropometric and Metabolic Traits Across Ancestries in the UK Biobank

Aims

Increased waist–hip ratio (WHR) increases free fatty acid (FFA) flux, contributing to dysglycemia and dyslipidemia in Europeans. We examined these phenomena in non‐Europeans, a group with higher prevalence of metabolic disease.

Methods

We undertook sex‐stratified analyses of WHR, body composition, HbA1c, lipids and total FFA in people without diabetes (Males: 153,613, Females: 193,574) of European (E, N  = 333,465), African (A, N  = 2040), African American (AA, N  = 2808), South Asian (SA, N  = 5121), East Asian (EA, N  = 1374), Asian‐Pacific Islander (API, N  = 570) and Latin American 1 (LA‐1, Puerto Rican and Dominican, N  = 1400) and Latin American 2 (LA‐2, Mexican and Mexican American, N  = 409) ancestry as defined by genetic data in the UK Biobank. Sex‐matched Es were the comparator group for all analyses.

Results

After adjustment for WHR, socioeconomic status, smoking, alcohol use, physical activity and menopause status in females, all groups except LA‐2 males had significantly higher HbA1c ( p < 2E − 3). Increased FFA and dyslipidemia was only seen in EA and API males but not females. SA males and females had dyslipidemia with no increase in FFA. A and AA males and females had lower FFA and improved lipids, while no significant differences were seen in lipid parameters amongst LA‐1 males and females and LA‐2 females compared to Es.

Conclusions

Dysglycemia is seen in most non‐E ancestries after adjustment for WHR and does not always associate with increased FFA and dyslipidemia. This indicates that factors beyond body composition and lipid flux may contribute to metabolic disease in non‐Es.