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oai:keep.lib.asu.edu:node-2005472025-06-04T22:38:51Zoai_pmh:alloai_pmh:repo_items

200547 https://hdl.handle.net/2286/R.2.N.200547 http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0 2025-05 60 pages Lakhotia, Ananya Jakubczak, Laura Mun, Chung Jung Barrett, The Honors College School of Molecular Sciences Department of Psychology School of Social Transformation Both native and diaspora South Asian populations are facing a rapid epidemiologic shift in disease burden from communicable diseases, such as malaria, cholera, etc., to non-communicable metabolic and endocrine disorders, such as Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), Metabolic Syndrome (MetS), Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM), and Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD). South Asians consistently report some of the highest prevalences of these conditions across the globe, with then having anywhere from two- to six-fold higher risks, depending on the condition, for developing these disorders than any other ethnic group. With the community developing these conditions at younger ages, lower BMIs, and with more severe symptoms, the significance of this trend cannot be understated. By analyzing the current rising rates of these metabolic and endocrine disorders through the lenses of history and the Evolutionary Mismatch Hypothesis, this study aims to draw a correlation between the 31 major famines that occurred on the South Asian subcontinent and the unfavorable health outcomes the community currently faces. Combining information on the history of starvation under British rule in the region, generational health effects and epigenetics of the Dutch, Chinese, and Ethiopian famines, and inheritance mechanisms for epigenetic biomarkers, and the pathology of non-communicable diseases present in South Asian population, demonstrates the longitudinal and multigenerational effects of famine on a population. Viewing the current disorder rates through the lens of famine could help create novel diagnostic and treatment criteria as well as community-based education programs for South Asians. South Asia Famine British Colonization Epigenetics Noncommunicable diseases Linking History and the Present - Exploring the Rising Rates of Metabolic & Endocrine Disorders in the South Asian Population Through the Lens of Famines that Occurred During British Colonization