Importance of Weight Loss in Type 2 Diabetes

Four hundred million people worldwide are affected by type 2 diabetes, a chronic, progressive disease. Overweight adults are more likely to be diagnosed with the condition because excess body fat can cause insulin resistance. Their pancreas still produces insulin, but their bodies cannot use it properly or move glucose into the cells. As the amount of glucose in the blood rises, the pancreas works even harder to make more insulin. However, the pancreas eventually wears out to overcome the problem, and its ability to produce insulin is affected.

Eighty to ninety percent of patients with type 2 diabetes are overweight. In the U.S., obese men have a seven times higher risk of developing the condition than their healthy weight counterparts, while obese women have a twelve times higher risk. There is no known cure for type 2 diabetes, but the disease can be controlled, and in some cases, patients can even experience remission.

Prediabetic Prevention

A National Institute of Health study found that weight loss delays the onset in prediabetic patients and decreases the risk of type 2 diabetes. Several clinical trials have established the potential to prevent type 2 diabetes in high-risk individuals by lifestyle intervention. The key seems to be a comprehensive approach that simultaneously helps correct several risk factors. There should be a strong focus on increased physical activity and dietary changes. Even lifestyle interventions lasting only a short time seem to have a long-lasting effect on risk factors and the occurrence of diabetes.

A Finnish Diabetes Prevention study identifies five predefined lifestyle targets that high-risk individuals with impaired glucose tolerance should aim for when preventing diabetes:

• weight loss greater than five percent
• intake of fat less than thirty percent
• intake of saturated fats less than ten percent
• increase of dietary fiber greater than fifteen grams per thousand calories
• increase of physical exercise to at least four hours a week

These targets are relatively easy to attain, and most people reach them with no problem. These same targets also apply to those diagnosed with diabetes and are feasible lifestyle changes for the long term.