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Although insulin resistance was originally viewed as a total inability of insulin to stimulate the metabolism of carbohydrates, the work of Harold Himsworth in the 1930s made it clear that insulin's stimulatory effect varies widely among people, including those without diabetes. Since the 1960s, insulin resistance, along with beta-cell defects, has been implicated in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus. More recently, Gerald Reaven and others have popularized the concept that insulin resistance in itself is a risk factor for many chronic ailments, including hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and some cancers. Insulin resistance is a hallmark of the so-called metabolic
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