Does Glycated Albumin Increase with Body Weight Reduction in Obese Non-Diabetic Subjects?

We reported that the body mass index (BMI) may exert a negative effect on glycated albumin (GA) in non-diabetic subjects and patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. In addition, we suggested a mechanism in which chronic inflammation in obesity may enhance albumin catabolism, leading to a decrease in GA levels for non-diabetic subjects. In the present study, we examined whether GA levels increased with body weight reduction in obese, non-diabetic subjects. Among the subjects who underwent complete medical checkups in 2010 and in 2015, 101 subjects with BMIs of 25 kg/m2 or higher, without diabetes mellitus in 2010 were included in this study. Correlations of changes in BMI for five years (ΔBMI) with changes in various clinical laboratory test values [ΔC-reactive protein (CRP), ΔGA, ΔHbA1c, Δfasting plasma glucose (FPG), ΔGA/HbA1c and ΔGA/FPG] were investigated. ΔBMI significantly and positively correlated with ΔCRP, while ΔBMI did not significantly correlate with ΔGA. ΔBMI significantly and positively correlated with ΔHbA1c and ΔFPG. Furthermore, ΔBMI showed significant negative correlations with ΔGA/HbA1c and ΔGA/FPG. GA levels did not increase with body weight reduction in obese non-diabetic subjects. Such a phenomenon might be considered the result when the positive control of GA levels through decreases in chronic inflammation due to body weight reduction was counterbalanced by the negative control of GA levels through improvement in glucose tolerance.