Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of
diabetes. The condition is caused when the pancreas fails to produce enough
insulin and the body cannot use the insulin it makes. The blood normally uses
glucose for energy; however, glucose builds up instead with type 2 diabetics
and fat accumulates in the pancreas.
That being said, losing less than one gram of
pancreas fat can reverse the diabetes, according to new research from Newcastle
University, U.K. The new study was published in the journal Diabetes
Care. Lead researcher professor Roy Taylor presented the study’s
findings at the World Diabetes Conference in Vancouver, Canada.
In the U.K., type 2 diabetes
affects 2.5 million people. There are 29.1 million people in the U.S. with
diabetes with 90% to 95% of those being type 2 diabetes cases. Another 86
million American adults suffer from prediabetes, which is a precursor toward
type 2 diabetes. Prediabetes patients have higher than normal blood sugar
levels, but not high enough to be called type 2 diabetes.
For the study, the researchers
measured for weight, insulin response, and fat levels in the pancreas before
and after weight loss surgery in 18 type 2 diabetics and nine non-diabetics.
The type 2 diabetics had an average diagnosis of 6.9 years, and every diabetic
had the condition for fewer than 15 years.
The researchers found that the type 2 diabetes patients had
elevated fat levels in the pancreas. All participants had been chosen to have
weight loss surgery to treat obesity. They were measured before the surgery,
and eight weeks later. The type 2 diabetics were immediately taken off
medication after the surgery.
Both of the groups lost around 13% of their
initial body weight. It is important to note that the fat in the pancreas did
not change with non-diabetics, but it was reduced to a normal level with the
type 2 diabetics. Therefore, the excess fat in the pancreas is unique to type 2
diabetics as it prevents the normal production of insulin. When excess fat is
removed from the pancreas, insulin secretion returns to normal and the patients
become free of diabetes.
With the type 2 diabetics at the
beginning of the study, pancreatic fat levels fell by 1.2% during the duration
of the study. A specially developed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan had
been used to measure the pancreatic fat levels. An average type 2 diabetic has
a pancreas of about 0.6 grams of fat.
“For people with type 2 diabetes,
losing weight allows them to drain excess fat out of the pancreas and allows
function to return to normal,” explained Professor Roy Taylor, Director of
Newcastle Magnetic Resonance Centre. “So if you ask how much weight you need to
lose to make your diabetes go away, the answer is one gram! But that gram needs
to be fat from the pancreas.”
On the other hand, the patients without diabetes had no change in their pancreatic fat levels, which suggests that it is only an issue with type 2 diabetics. From an individualized perspective, people will vary on how much fat the pancreas tolerates before the development of type 2 diabetes.
On the other hand, the patients without diabetes had no change in their pancreatic fat levels, which suggests that it is only an issue with type 2 diabetics. From an individualized perspective, people will vary on how much fat the pancreas tolerates before the development of type 2 diabetes.
Previous studies have highlighted the
importance of how weight loss through diet can reverse type 2 diabetes. A 2011
study first found that diet could remove fat in the pancreas to allow for
normal insulin secretion.
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SOURCE: http://www.doctorshealthpress.com/health-news/type-2-diabetes-connected-to-fat-deposits-in-pancreas-study-finds