Weight Loss Aids People With Diabetes.

Source: Tufts University
December 15, 2000 (Reviewed: February 16, 2003)

Introduction

Obesity brings with it a host of health hazards, including an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, a condition in which the body becomes less able to use insulin to control blood sugar. In fact, excess weigh increases the risk twofold. For those who already have type 2 diabetes, treatment of the condition hinges on weight management, and the results can be impressive. Even a relatively small weight loss can decrease reliance on medication, better control blood sugar, and improve cholesterol levels. And better control of diabetes symptoms means better long range health outcomes. A large study recently profiled in the journal Diabetes Care demonstrated just how important weight loss can be.

12 years of follow-up: weight loss reduced risk by 25%

In this investigation, researchers from the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) identified a group of nearly 5,000 overweight men and women with diabetes who were part of a larger, ongoing study. At the time they joined the study over a decade earlier, participants reported their current height and weight and indicated whether or not their weight had changed recently. The researchers used this information, coupled with data on the number and causes of death of study participants who died over the next 12 years, to compare how those who reported intentional weight loss fared relative to others in the study. The results showed that those who reported an intentional weight loss were 25% less likely to have died during this 12-year period when compared to other study participants. The largest health advantage was seen in those who lost 20 to 29 pounds of excess weight.

The authors of this study point out that there are many questions about the self-reported weight loss that they cannot address with the information they have. For example, they don't know if people who lost weight were able to maintain that weight loss over time, or if the total weight lost represented intermittent gains and losses. They also say that the people who made the effort to lose weight may have practiced overall better health habits, such as close attention to diet, that resulted in better blood sugar control.

Nevertheless, this study underscores what health professionals acknowledge to be sobering health statistics: type 2 diabetes triggers significant health problems that lead to heart disease, kidney disease, stroke, and blindness, and is a major cause of early death among American adults. Obesity compounds the problem, but even a modest weight loss can help overweight people with diabetes better control their blood sugar, a key step in dealing with the potentially damaging complications of this condition.

Source

• Intentional weight loss and mortality among overweight individuals with diabetes D. Williamson, T. Thompson , M. Thun , Diabetes Care, 2000, vol. 23, pp. 1499 --1504

Related Links
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