Type 2 Diabetes Remission Possible in Patients with Lower BMIs, Study Finds

Though type 2 diabetes cannot be cured, some patients may be able to put it into remission. This can be achieved through methods including bariatric surgery, low-calorie diets, or carbohydrate restriction. Now, a new study finds that remission isn’t limited to those who are overweight or obese.

Researchers recently presented the findings of a study on diabetes reversal in patients with lower BMIs. The information, shared at the 2022 Diabetes UK Professional Conference, showed that the majority of participants in a trial of those with lower body weights were able to achieve remission with diet-induced weight loss.

PHOTO: ADOBE STOCK / RH2010

Roy Taylor, principal investigator on the ReTUNE trial and professor at Newcastle University, says, “This is very good news for everyone with type 2 diabetes, not only pointing the way forward for effective return to health but also challenging the misconceptions clinging to the condition.”

In the past, Taylor had done research showing that those who were overweight or obese could take steps to put the condition into remission by losing weight. They found this was associated with losing fat inside the pancreas and liver, which are key in blood sugar control. For this study, Taylor’s team took a similar approach with patients whose BMIs were at or just above the healthy range of below 27.

Twenty participants with type 2 diabetes were monitored by a medical team to help them stop all glucose lowering medication and follow a low-calorie diet with formula meal replacements and non-starchy vegetables for 2-4 weeks. They then had a 4-6 week weight loss maintenance period, during which they gradually reintroduced normal foods. This cycle was repeated until the participants lost 10-15% of their bodyweight.

PHOTO: ADOBE STOCK / ELENA BLOKHINA

After 12 months, 70% had gone into remission, with 50% doing so after the first weight loss cycle. The team found that an average weight loss of around 8% was necessary for remission. The participants’ liver and pancreas fat levels, which were higher than expected to begin the trial, had also gone down to normal levels.

Chris Askew, chief executive of Diabetes UK, says, “This game-changing study from Professor Taylor and his team advances our understanding of why type 2 diabetes develops, and what can be done to treat it.

“Our ambition is for as many people as possible to have the chance to put their type 2 diabetes into remission and live well for longer. The findings of ReTUNE potentially take us a significant step closer to achieving this goal by showing that remission isn’t only possible for people of certain body weights.”

PHOTO: ADOBE STOCK / PROSTOCK-STUDIO

To learn more about diabetes remission, check out Diabetes UK’s website.

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