Comparison of adipokines in a cross-sectional study with healthy overweight, insulin-sensitive and healthy lean, insulin-resistant subjects, assisted by a family doctor primary care program

Background In most individuals, obesity and insulin resistance coexist. However, some individuals have excessive adipose tissue mass but remain insulin sensitive. Moreover, lean individuals can develop acute inflammation-induced insulin resistance, even without excess adipose tissue mass. Objective Our aim was to compare inflammatory markers in overweight, insulin-sensitive and lean, insulin-resistant healthy subjects. Methods A cross-sectional study with 1098 participants (CAMELIA project) was conducted in family doctor primary care program at Niteroi, RJ, Brazil. In the present substudy, we have selected non-obese healthy subjects (n = 203). Insulin resistance was defined by a homeostatic model assessment (HOMA-IR) >2.6, and overweight subject BMIs were 25