Researchers are standing behind new data on how people's posteriors reflect changes linked to aging and diabetes.
Shrinkage or inflammation of the gluteus maximus muscles of the buttocks may reflect frailty, sitting time, fat deposition and diabetes risk, and these changes may occur differently among men and women, the British team said.
"Unlike past studies that mainly looked at muscle size or fat, we used 3D shape mapping to pinpoint exactly where the muscle changes, giving a much more detailed picture," noted study coauthor Marjola Thanaj, a senior research fellow at the University of Westminster's Research Centre for Optimal Health in London.
Her team will present their findings next week in Chicago at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.
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