Gómez-Taylor, BarbaraCasaña Mohedo, JorgePalau Ferré, Alma MaríaPráxedes Gómez, RocíoQuesada Hernández, AaronNavarro Escobar, ErnestoSandri, ElenaMorales Palomares, Sara2026-10-142026-10-142026-05https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12466/7775Author Contributions: B.G.-T.: Investigation, Methodology, Data Curation, Writing—review and editing. J.C.M.: Validation, Methodology, Formal analysis, Writing—review and editing. A.M.P.-F.: Resources, Investigation, Validation. R.P.G.: Investigation, Data Curation. A.Q.H.: Investigation, Data Curation. E.N.E.: Resources, Investigation. E.S.: Conceptualization, Formal analysis, Writing—original draft, Supervision, Project administration. S.M.P.: Writing—original draft, Visualization, Writing—review and editing. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.Background and aims: The aim of this study was to examine the relationships between muscle function, dietary quality, body composition markers, and metabolic status in ambulatory patients with type 2 diabetes. The study sought to validate low-cost tools, such as handgrip strength and waist circumference, as potential ;nursing vital signs; for metabolic risk stratification. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted with adult patients with type 2 diabetes. Muscle function was assessed through handgrip strength (dynamometry) and metabolic status via the HOMA-IR index. Visceral adiposity was estimated using waist circumference and the Lipid Accumulation Product (LAP); dietary quality was evaluated with the Spanish Healthy Eating Index (IASE), and cellular health through the phase angle (PhA) obtained by electrical bioimpedance. Non-parametric tests and Spearman correlations were applied due to the non-normal distribution of the data. Conclusions: In this ambulatory diabetic population, waist circumference emerged as a practical and potent surrogate for insulin resistance burden. Although metabolic dysfunction was not directly associated with dietary quality or phase angle, a high prevalence of probable sarcopenia (36.1%) and poor dietary quality (77.8%) were detected. The implementation of non-invasive tools like waist circumference and handgrip strength in nursing consultations could optimize early risk stratification and allow for more targeted lifestyle interventions.engAttribution 4.0 Internationalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/journal article2026-10-14https://doi.org/10.3390/diabetology70500852673-4540open accessType 2 diabetes mellitusInsulin resistanceWaist circumferenceHOMA-IR25-hydroxyvitamin DFatty liver indexMetabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver diseaseSarcopenic obesityHandgrip strengthPhase angle3206 Ciencias de la Nutrición