Between 1976 and 2006, the average BMI of Type 2 diabetics increased 17 percent, to 34.2. The average BMI of adults without Type 2 diabetes increased 11.5 percent to 28.1. (A BMI of 25 or more is considered overweight.)

The average age of adults with Type 2 diabetes increased from 56.7 years in 1976-1980 to 59.9 years in 2005-2006. The percentage of Type 2 diabetics who were men increased from 42.9 percent to 46.3 percent.

Among the reasons for the increase in obesity among diabetics and the overall population are inexpensive food, larger portion sizes and consumption of sugary soda, Kramer said. Stomach-stapling gastric bypass surgery can be a last resort for morbidly obese diabetics who have been unable to control their weight through diet and other lifestyle changes. In many patients, weight-loss surgery can eliminate the need for diabetes-related medications.

Kramer is an associate professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. Her co-authors, all in the Department of Preventive Medicine and Epidemiology, are Guichan Cao, Lara Dugas, Amy Luke, Richard Cooper and Ramon Durazo-Arvizu.

Source: Loyola University Health System