Table 2.

Ethnic differences in insulin sensitivity and levels of adiponectin in adolescents.

Parameter	African–Americans	Caucasians
n (male/female)	41/42	41/37
Age in years (range)	12.2 (8.5–16.8)	12.3 (8.0–17.2)
BMI (kg/m2, mean ± SEM)	24.8 ± 0.9	24.6 ± 0.96
Insulin sensitivity (mg × kg/ FFM × min, mean ± SEM)	11.0 ± 0.65*	13.2 ± 0.91
Adiponectin (μg/ml, mean ± SEM)	10.2 ± 0.6*	12.1 ± 0.68

^*p < 0.05 versus Caucasians.

Adiponectin levels and insulin sensitivity are lower in African–American adolescents compared with whites who are well matched in age, gender and BMI. Data were obtained during a euglycermic clamp study in which glucose was infused at a fixed rate in each individual and insulin was infused at a rate necessary to maintain constant blood sugar levels.

FFM: Fat free mass; SEM: Standard error of the mean.

Adapted with permission from [40].