Being short heightens your risk of diabetes

Paris - Each additional 10 centimetres in height translates into a 41 per cent smaller chance of contracting the disease in men.

Shorter people are at greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to a study published on Tuesday.
Each additional 10 centimetres in height translates into a 41 per cent smaller chance of contracting the disease in men and a 33 per cent smaller chance in women, according to the research in medical journal Diabetologia.
The greater health risk in shorter individuals is likely linked to higher liver fat content, and a larger number of risk factors for heart disease, stroke and diabetes, the authors speculated. It has also been reported that insulin sensitivity and the functioning of special cells in the pancreas that secrete the hormone are better in taller people.
The study draws from a detailed medical survey of more than 16,600 women and nearly 11,000 men - aged 40 to 65 - in Potsdam, Germany from 1994 to 1998.
"These observations corroborate that height is a useful predictive marker for diabetes risk," the authors concluded.