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13 Mar 2008
People with insulin-resistant type 2 diabetes could control their condition more effectively by losing weight and making changes to their lifestyles, a diabetes expert has claimed.
According to Dr Roger Unger from UT Southwestern Medical Center, giving intensive insulin therapy to obese type 2 diabetics actually increases the fatty acids that cause diabetes.
He argues that the best way of tackling the disease should be to cut down on calories, thereby reducing insulin in the blood and fatty acids stimulated by high insulin levels.
"Giving more insulin to an insulin-resistant patient is akin to raising the blood pressure of a patient with high blood pressure to overcome resistance to blood flow. Instead, you would try to reduce the resistance," he explained.
He argued that there are now many therapies that improve diabetes by correcting the insulin resistance by reducing the body fat.
Insulin should be given to patients with insulin deficiency, but should not be given if insulin levels are already very high but ineffective, he added.
Dr Unger's views are reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
According to recent figures reported by the International Diabetes Federation, diabetes affects an estimated 60 million people across Europe.
It is now the fourth highest cause of death.
Click here to learn more about diabetes
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