John Gray’s bestseller Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus confirmed for many readers what they suspected all along. His book explains how men and women have innately distinct natures. Guess what? Mother Goose beat him to the punch by nearly four centuries! In a nursery rhyme she instructs us that males and females are pasted together differently from each other.
What are little boys made of? Snips and snails and puppy dogs’ tails.
What are little girls made of? Sugar and spice and everything nice.
Mother Goose—or those who collected the poems since the 17th century—did not have access to today’s biological research. If she had, she might have been fascinated by new findings published in March 2024 by the International Journal of Obesity. A multinational team from some of the foremost European medical research centers contributed a paper titled “Sex differences in adipose insulin resistance are linked to obesity, lipolysis and insulin receptor substrate.”[i] Those are a lot of technical terms, but their research reveals inherent male vs. female differences in how fat cells are broken down. Unfortunately, there’s worse news for Mars than for Venus.
Obesity is measured by body mass index (BMI), a measure of body fat based on weight and height. For adults, BMI is ranked as follows:
- Underweight = less than 18.5
- Normal weight = 18.5–24.9
- Overweight = 25–29.9
- Obesity = 30 or greater
If you don’t know your BMI, you can access a BMI calculator here.
Before I describe the new study, here’s what we already knew. “… [M]en are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes at lower BMIs than women, and some experts thought that this was to do with different fat distribution. Men also tend to develop this condition when at younger ages.”[ii]
However, the new study found that fat distribution is not the problem. Instead, fat cells in obese men metabolize fat less efficiently than those in obese women. This sets up a condition called insulin resistance. Insulin is a hormone (chemical messenger) manufactured by the pancreas. The body needs it for cells to take in glucose (sugar) from the blood as part of their energy fuel. However, if insulin resistance develops, it the cell is blocked from accessing blood sugar. When this happens, the circulating sugar level rises. If it becomes too high, the pancreas becomes exhausted and no longer functions normally. The high blood sugar levels become damaging—in short, a person develops type 2 diabetes.
But why would obese men be more prone than obese women to develop type 2 diabetes at earlier ages, and more likely to suffer complications from this disease? The researchers had to dig deeply into cellular biology and even the genes to find the clues.
Genes play an important role in regulating hormones that control many bodily functions. For the study,
Researchers looked at the mRNA [messenger RNA] expressed in the fat cells to determine which genes were being expressed. They discovered that the gene encoding insulin receptor substrate 1 IRS1 was expressed less in men than in women. Further analysis showed that there were differences in the expression of certain genes, including testosterone receptors in male fat tissue, compared to fat tissue taken from women.[iii]
Obviously, obesity is not good for anyone, but it seems men are in particular danger for diabetes. Are there implications for prostate cancer (PCa)? Well, studies on a possible link between diabetes and PCa have conflicting results. Some find greater PCa risk for men with diabetes, while others find no association. On the other hand, obese men are at higher risk for aggressive PCa.
What can you do to reduce risk? If your BMI is 25 (overweight) or even 30+ (obese), the National Institutes of Health recommends:
- Maintain a healthy weight
- Increase physical activity
- Eat a heart-healthy diet
- Know and control your health numbers.
As we repeatedly say at the Sperling Prostate Center, if it’s good for the heart it’s good for the prostate, and vice versa. An easy way to track your BMI is to download the BMI calculator app of your choice. Keep your BMI in the normal range. Your prostate (in fact, your whole body) will thank you.
NOTE: This content is solely for purposes of information and does not substitute for diagnostic or medical advice. Talk to your doctor if you are experiencing pelvic pain, or have any other health concerns or questions of a personal medical nature.
References
[i] Arner, P., Viguerie, N., Massier, L. et al. Sex differences in adipose insulin resistance are linked to obesity, lipolysis and insulin receptor substrate 1. Int J Obes (2024).
[ii] Flynn, Hanna. “Why are men at higher diabetes, diabetes complications risk than women?” MedicalNewsToday, May 17, 2024. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/why-are-men-at-higher-diabetes-and-diabetes-complications-risk-than-women
[iii] Ibid.
About Dr. Dan Sperling
Dan Sperling, MD, DABR, is a board certified radiologist who is globally recognized as a leader in multiparametric MRI for the detection and diagnosis of a range of disease conditions. As Medical Director of the Sperling Prostate Center, Sperling Medical Group and Sperling Neurosurgery Associates, he and his team are on the leading edge of significant change in medical practice. He is the co-author of the new patient book Redefining Prostate Cancer, and is a contributing author on over 25 published studies. For more information, contact the Sperling Prostate Center.
