Thigh fat and muscle each contribute to excess cardiometabolic risk in South Asians, independent of visceral adipose tissue.

OBJECTIVE: To compare fat distribution and associations between fat depots and cardiometabolic traits in South Asians and Europeans. METHODS: Five hundred and fourteen South Asians and 669 Europeans, aged 56-86. Questionnaires, record review, blood testing, and coronary artery calcification scores provided diabetes and clinical plus subclinical coronary heart disease (CHD) diagnoses. Abdominal visceral (VAT) and subcutaneous adipose tissue, thigh subcutaneous adipose tissue (TSAT), intermuscular and intramuscular thigh fat and thigh muscle were measured by CT. RESULTS: Accounting for body size, South Asians had greater VAT and TSAT than Europeans, but less thigh muscle. Associations between depots and disease were stronger in South Asians than Europeans. In multivariable analyses in South Asians, VAT was positively associated with diabetes and CHD, while TSAT and thigh muscle were protective for diabetes, and thigh muscle for CHD. Differences in VAT and thigh muscle only partially explained the excess diabetes and CHD in South Asians versus Europeans. Insulin resistance did not account for the effects of TSAT or thigh muscle. CONCLUSIONS: Greater VAT and TSAT and lesser thigh muscle in South Asians contributed to ethnic differences in cardiometabolic disease. Effects of TSAT and thigh muscle were independent of insulin resistance

Ethnic Differences in Associations Between Blood Pressure and Stroke in South Asian and European Men.

It is unknown whether associations between blood pressure (BP) and stroke vary between Europeans and South Asians, despite higher stroke rates in the latter. We report findings from a UK cohort study of 1375 European and 1074 South Asian men, not receiving antihypertensive medication, aged 40 to 69 years at baseline (1988-1991). Assessment included BP, blood tests, anthropometry, and questionnaires. Incident stroke was established at 20 years from death certification, hospital and primary care records, and participant report. South Asians had higher systolic BP, diastolic BP, and mean arterial pressure than Europeans, and similar pulse pressure. Associations between systolic BP or diastolic BP and stroke were stronger in South Asians than Europeans, after adjustment for age, smoking status, waist/hip ratio, total/high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol ratio, diabetes mellitus, fasting glucose, physical activity, and heart rate (systolic BP: Europeans [odds ratio, 1.22; 95% confidence interval, 0.98-1.51], South Asians [1.56; 1.24-1.95]; ethnic difference P=0.04; diastolic BP: Europeans [0.90; 0.71-1.13], South Asians [1.68; 1.32-2.15]; P<0.001). Hemodynamic correlates of stroke risk differed by ethnicity: in combined models, mean arterial pressure but not pulse pressure was detrimentally associated with stroke in South Asians, whereas the converse was true for Europeans. The combination of hyperglycemia and hypertension appeared particularly detrimental for South Asians. There are marked ethnic differences in associations between BP parameters and stroke. Undue focus on systolic BP for risk prediction, and current age and treatment thresholds may be inappropriate for individuals of South Asian ancestry

Ethnicity-specific obesity cut-points in the development of Type 2 diabetes - a prospective study including three ethnic groups in the United Kingdom

Aims: Conventional definitions of obesity, e.g. body mass index (BMI) &#8805; 30 kg/m2 or waist circumference cut-points of 102 cm (men) and 88 cm (women), may underestimate metabolic risk in non-Europeans. We prospectively identified equivalent ethnicity-specific obesity cut-points for the estimation of diabetes risk in British South Asians, African-Caribbeans and Europeans. Methods: We studied a population-based cohort from London, UK (1356 Europeans, 842 South Asians, 335 African-Caribbeans) who were aged 40–69 years at baseline (1988–1991), when they underwent anthropometry, fasting and post-load (75 g oral glucose tolerance test) blood tests. Incident Type 2 diabetes was identified from primary care records, participant recall and/or follow-up biochemistry. Ethnicity-specific obesity cut-points in association with diabetes incidence were estimated using negative binomial regression. Results: Diabetes incidence rates (per 1000 person years) at a median follow-up of 19 years were 20.8 (95% CI: 18.4, 23.6) and 12.0 (8.3, 17.2) in South Asian men and women, 16.5 (12.7, 21.4) and 17.5 (13.0, 23.7) in African-Caribbean men and women, and 7.4 (6.3, 8.7), and 7.2 (5.3, 9.8) in European men and women. For incidence rates equivalent to those at a BMI of 30 kg/m2 in European men and women, age- and sex-adjusted cut-points were: South Asians, 25.2 (23.4, 26.6) kg/m2; and African-Caribbeans, 27.2 (25.2, 28.6) kg/m2. For South Asian and African-Caribbean men, respectively, waist circumference cut-points of 90.4 (85.0, 94.5) and 90.6 (85.0, 94.5) cm were equivalent to a value of 102 cm in European men. Waist circumference cut-points of 84.0 (74.0, 90.0) cm in South Asian women and 81.2 (71.4, 87.4) cm in African-Caribbean women were equivalent to a value of 88 cm in European women. Conclusions: In prospective analyses, British South Asians and African-Caribbeans had equivalent diabetes incidence rates at substantially lower obesity levels than the conventional European cut-points

Reassessing Ethnic Differences in Mean BMI and Changes Between 2007 and 2013 in English Children.

OBJECTIVE: National body fatness (BF) data for English South Asian and Black children use BMI, which provides inaccurate ethnic comparisons. BF levels and time trends in the English National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP) between 2007 and 2013 were assessed by using ethnic-specific adjusted BMI (aBMI) for South Asian and Black children. METHODS: Analyses were based on 3,195,323 children aged 4 to 5 years and 2,962,673 children aged 10 to 11 years. aBMI values for South Asian and Black children (relating to BF as in White children) were derived independently. Mean aBMI levels and 5-year aBMI changes were obtained by using linear regression. RESULTS: In the 2007-2008 NCMP, mean aBMIs in 10- to 11-year-old children (boys, girls) were higher in South Asian children (20.1, 19.9 kg/m2 ) and Black girls, but not in Black boys (18.4, 19.2 kg/m2 ) when compared with White children (18.6, 19.0 kg/m2 ; all P < 0.001). Mean 5-year changes (boys, girls) were higher in South Asian children (0.16, 0.32 kg/m2 per 5 y; both P < 0.001) and Black boys but not girls (0.13, 0.15 kg/m2 per 5 y; P = 0.01, P = 0.41) compared with White children (0.02, 0.11 kg/m2 per 5 y). Ethnic differences at 4 to 5 years were similar. Unadjusted BMI showed similar 5-year changes but different mean BMI patterns. CONCLUSIONS: BF levels were higher in South Asian children than in other groups in 2007 and diverged from those in White children until 2013, a pattern not apparent from unadjusted BMI data

Ethnic Differences in Disability Prevalence and Their Determinants Studied over a 20-Year Period: A Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: To compare disability prevalence rates in the major ethnic groups in the UK and understand the risk factors contributing to differences identified. It was hypothesised that Indian Asian and African Caribbean people would experience higher rates of disability compared with Europeans. METHODS: Data was collected from 888 European, 636 Indian Asian and 265 African Caribbean men and women, aged 58-88 years at 20-year follow-up of community-based cohort study, based in West London. Disability was measured using a performance-based locomotor function test and self-reported questionnaires on functional limitation, and instrumental (IADL) and basic activities of daily living (ADL). RESULTS: The mean (SD) age of participants at follow-up was 69.6 (6.2) years. Compared with Europeans, Indian Asian people were significantly more likely to experience all of the disability outcomes than Europeans; this persisted after adjustment for socioeconomic, behavioural, adiposity and chronic disease risk factors measured at baseline (locomotor dysfunction: adjusted odds ratio (OR) 2.20, 95% CI 1.56-3.11; functional limitation: OR 2.77, 2.01-3.81; IADL impairment: OR 3.12, 2.20-4.41; ADL impairment: OR 1.58, 1.11-2.24). In contrast, a modest excess risk of disability was observed in African Caribbeans, which was abolished after adjustment (e.g. locomotor dysfunction: OR 1.37, 0.90-1.91); indeed a reduced risk of ADL impairment appeared after multivariable adjustment (OR from 0.99, 0.68-1.45 to 0.59, 0.38-0.93), compared with Europeans. CONCLUSIONS: Substantially elevated risk of disability was observed among Indian Asian participants, unexplained by known factors. A greater understanding of determinants of disability and normative functional beliefs of healthy aging is required in this population to inform intervention efforts to prevent disability

The effects of weight and physical activity change over 20 years on later-life objective and self-reported disability.

Weight and health behaviours are known to affect physical disability; however the evidence exploring the impact of changes to these lifestyle factors over the life course on disability is inconsistent. We aimed to explore the roles of weight and activity change between mid and later life on physical disability

Marine Evidence-based Sensitivity Assessment (MarESA) – A Guide

The Marine Evidence-based Sensitivity Assessment (MarESA) methodology was developed by the Marine Life Information Network (MarLIN) team at the Marine Biological Association of the UK. The following guide details the approach, its assumptions, and its application to sensitivity assessment. The guide discusses: • key terms used in sensitivity assessment; • the definitions and terms used in the MarESA approach; • its assumptions; • the definition of resistance, resilience and sensitivity; • the definition of pressures and their benchmarks; • the step by step process by which the possible sensitivity of each feature (habitat, biotope or species) to each pressure is assessed; • the interpretation and application of evidence to sensitivity assessments on a pressure by pressure basis; and • limitations in the application of sensitivity assessments in management. The MarESA methodology provides a systematic process to compile and assess the best available scientific evidence to determine each sensitivity assessment. The evidence used is documented throughout the process to provide an audit trail to explain each sensitivity assessment. Unlike other expert-based approaches, this means that the MarESA assessments can be repeated and updated. The resultant 'evidence base' is the ultimate source of information for the application of the sensitivity assessments to management and planning decisions. The MarESA dataset and MarLIN website represent the largest review of the potential effects of human activities and natural events on the marine and coastal habitats of the North East Atlantic yet undertaken

Some considerations on the transmissivity of thin metal films

Copyright © 2008 Optical Society of America. This paper was published in Optics Express and is made available as an electronic reprint with the permission of OSA. The paper can be found at the following URL on the OSA website: http://www.opticsinfobase.org/oe/abstract.cfm?URI=oe-16-22-17258 . Systematic or multiple reproduction or distribution to multiple locations via electronic or other means is prohibited and is subject to penalties under law.As interest in plasmonics grows the optical properties of thin metal films becomes increasingly significant. Here we explore the transmissivity of thin metal films at normal incidence, from the ultraviolet to microwaves, and show how, contrary to simplistic treatments, the microwave transmissivity may be much less than the optical transmissivity for films which are well below the skin depth in thickness. This arises because the film is acting as a zero order Fabry-Perot with very high reflectivity at each interface. The skin depth then becomes irrelevant for thin metal films at microwave frequencies. We also note in passing that the expected exponential dependence on thickness at higher thicknesses has an asymptotic limit at zero thickness which may be as high as four times the input intensity

Ethnic differences in associations between fat deposition and incident diabetes and underlying mechanisms: The SABRE study

Objective: To examine ethnic differences in ectopic fat and associations with incident diabetes. Methods: In a UK cohort study, 1338 Europeans, 838 South Asians, and 330 African Caribbeans living in London were aged 40-69 years at baseline. Baseline assessment included blood tests, anthropometry, and questionnaires. Anthropometry-based prediction equations estimated baseline visceral adipose tissue (VAT). Incident diabetes was ascertained from record review, self-report, or oral glucose tolerance testing. Results: South Asians had more and African Caribbeans less estimated VAT than Europeans. Both ethnic minorities had larger truncal skinfolds than Europeans. In men, adjustment for risk factors (BMI, smoking, systolic blood pressure, and HDL-cholesterol) markedly attenuated the association between estimated VAT and diabetes in Europeans (standardized subhazard ratios [95% CI]: from 1.74 [1.49, 2.03] to 1.16 [0.77, 1.76]) and African Caribbeans (1.72 [1.26, 2.35] to 1.44 [0.69, 3.02]) but not South Asians (1.60 [1.38, 1.86] to 1.90 [1.37, 2.64]). In women, attenuation was observed only for South Asians (1.80 [1.01, 3.23] to 1.07 [0.49, 2.31]). Associations between truncal skinfolds and diabetes appeared less affected by multivariable adjustment in South Asians and African Caribbeans than Europeans (1.24 [0.97, 1.57] and 1.28 [0.89, 1.82] versus 1.02 [0.77, 1.36] in men; 1.91 [1.03, 3.56] and 1.42 [0.86, 2.34] versus 1.23 [0.74, 2.05] in women). Conclusions: Differences in overall truncal fat, as well as VAT, may contribute to the excess of diabetes in South Asian and African Caribbean groups, particularly for women