The ability of a woman's body to counter the effects of insulin resistance is probably the reason why women typically develop heart diseases almost 10 years later than men.
Insulin is a hormone in the body that takes glucose from the bloodstream to cells where it is used as energy. Insulin resistance occurs when the body loses its capability to use this glucose properly. This increases the risk of developing diabetes and other heart diseases.
Previous studies have established that men develop heart diseases almost 10 years earlier than women of the same age. However, researchers were not able to determine the reason behind this phenomenon, up until now. In a recent study, conducted by Stanford University School of Medicine, researchers found that women have the biological ability to balance and deal with any reduced response to insulin that may take place in their body. This provides an explanation for the delayed onset of heart diseases among women.
"Among men and women ages 50 or younger with comparable levels of insulin resistance, our study found women experienced fewer complications than men did," said the study's lead author, Sun H. Kim, MD, MS, of Stanford University School of Medicine. "This ability to deal with the fallout from insulin resistance was no longer present when we examined women who were 51 and older. This gender difference may illuminate the 'female advantage' - a phenomenon where the onset of cardiovascular disease tends to happen a decade later in women than in men."
In the research, scientists studied insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease risk in 468 women and 354 men. They found that women had lower blood pressure and fasting blood sugar levels than their male counterparts among participants aged 50 and below. Researchers also noted that women had lower levels of triglycerides. These are fats in the blood that can increase the risk of heart disease and stroke.
"The findings suggest young women are uniquely equipped to offset the negative effects of insulin resistance," Kim said. "Although there is no difference in the level of insulin resistance between genders, young women are still able to avoid the worst complications from insulin resistance."
Kim speculates that this biological ability might be a natural defense mechanism during their reproductive years. However, further studies need to be conducted to prove this theory.
