Purpose: This population-based cross-sectional study aimed to determine whether the triglyceride-glucose index (TyG index) is associated with sarcopenic obesity (SO) and whether it would be a helpful indicator of SO.
Methods: A total of 3821 participants aged ≥ 60 years were selected for the study group, and 4919 participants aged 20-39 years were included as a reference group. The participants were allocated to sarcopenia, obesity, and SO groups depending on if their body mass index (BMI) was ≥25 kg/m2 and their sarcopenia index was ≤1 standard deviation (SD) lower than the mean of the reference group. The sex-specific differences and trends among the participants were analyzed by using the TyG index tertiles, and appropriate cut-off values of the TyG index for SO were calculated.
Results: As the TyG index increased, BMI increased, but the sarcopenia index decreased in both sexes. Males and females in the middle and highest tertiles of the TyG index were 1.775 and 3.369, and they were 1.993 and 3.157 times more likely to have SO, respectively. The cut-off values of the TyG index for SO in males and females were ≥8.72 and 8.67, respectively.
Conclusion: A high TyG index is positively associated with SO, and the TyG index may be considered a potential indicator of SO.
Keywords: TyG index; insulin resistance; obesity; older population; sarcopenia; sarcopenic obesity.