Effects of age on plasma glucose levels in non-diabetic Hong Kong Chinese.

AIM To analyze the relationship between age and plasma glucose levels in Hong Kong Chinese population. METHODS We performed a cross-sectional study with 15,603 non-diabetic subjects from the community of Hong Kong. Plasma glucose concentration was measured in blood specimens from the subjects. The time of blood taking varied, depending on the availability of the patients. RESULTS There were 11,148 (71.4%) women and 4455 (28.6%) men (mean age: 50.1+/-16.1 years). There were 6901 (44.2%) patients who had plasma glucose measured in the fasting condition, 2999 (19.2%) who were 2-hour post-prandial, and 5703 (36.6%) who had plasma glucose measured at a random time. The correlation coefficients between age and plasma glucose levels in fasting, 2-hour post-prandial, and random group of patients were 0.159, 0.169, and 0.114, respectively (adjusted for body mass index, smoking, and gender; all P values <0.001). Fasting and random plasma glucose level increased by 0.15 mmol/L, while 2-hour post-prandial plasma glucose level increased by 0.26 mmol/L per decade-increase in age. CONCLUSION Plasma glucose levels progressively increase with age in Hong Kong Chinese non-diabetic subjects.