Being overweight increases the chances of developing the common type of diabetes, type 2 diabetes. In this disease, the body makes enough insulin but the cells in the body have become resistant to the salutary action of insulin. Being overweight stresses the insides of individual cells. Specifically, overeating stresses the membranous network inside of cells called endoplasmic reticulum (ER). When the ER has more nutrients to process than it can handle, it sends out an alarm signal telling the cell to dampen down the insulin receptors on the cell surface. This translates to insulin resistance and to persistently high concentrations of the sugar glucose in the blood -- one of the sure signs of diabetes. reduction of bodyweight improves glycemic control, mortality and morbidity. Treating obesity in the diabetic is hampered as some diabetic treatments lead to weight gain. Bariatric surgery is currently the most effective anti-obesity treatment and causes long-term remission of diabetes in many patients. However, surgery has a high cost and is associated with a significant risk of complications, and in practical terms only limited numbers can undergo this therapy. The choice of pharmacological agents suitable for treatment of diabetes and obesity is currently limited. The glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists improve glycemia and induce a modest weight loss, but there are doubts over their long-term safety. New drugs such as lorcaserin and phentermine/topiramate are being approved for obesity and have modest, salutary effects on glycemia, but again long-term safety is unclear. This article will also examine some future avenues for development, including gut hormone analogues that promise to combine powerful weight reduction with beneficial effects on glucose metabolism.
Last date updated on April, 2024
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