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Type II diabetes management and weight loss

By Medical Expert Team

Mar 19 , 2015 | 2 min read

India is currently in the midst of two closely linked epidemics: obesity and type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes, which represents over 90 percent of all cases of diabetes, occurs when cells become insensitive to insulin, the hormone which regulates blood sugar levels. Over 80 percent of type 2 diabetics are obese.

India leads the world in this epidemic of diabetes. The country currently has the highest number (50.8 million) of people suffering from diabetes By 2010 almost seven percent of India’s adult population will have the disease.

Type 2 diabetes is a disease that mainly affected older people however, during the last decade; cases of Type 2 diabetes amongst the younger generation have begun to emerge. The most prevalent diabesity (Diabetes and Obesity) related diseases include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, stroke, gallbladder disease, gastro-esophageal reflux disease, osteoarthritis and sleep apnea.

Cardiac/heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in both obese people and also diabetics. For obese patients, the risk of dying as a result of associated co-morbid conditions, such as this, or any other condition can be as much as two fold higher than that for people who are of a healthy weight.

Developing Type 2 diabetes in childhood is even more serious because the earlier the onset, the longer the exposure to abnormal insulin and glucose and fat concentrations in the blood, and the greater the cumulative damage to the eyes, kidneys, heart, nerves etc.

Patients with diabesity (Diabetes and Obesity), need effective treatment options as achieving and sustaining weight loss in people with type 2 diabetes has been an elusive goal.

Obese Patients with Type 2 diabetes have consistently failed to lose weight beyond a point using conventional weight loss methods of less food consumption, increased exercise and activity, behavioral modifications, very-low-calorie diets, and medication.

The point where conventional methods of treating diabesity tend to fail have been defined as BMI (body mass index = Weight/ height2) > 32.5kg/m2 for Asians.

Patients with BMI (body mass index = Weight/ height2) over 32.5kg/m2 with Type 2 diabetes should be recommended bariatric surgery (Weight Loss Surgery) or surgery for morbid obesity as an early intervention.

Substantial and durable weight loss achieved by bariatric surgical procedures provides a strongly beneficial effect in patients of type 2 diabetes However, remission of type 2 diabetes is lower in older patients and in those with a longer history of type 2 diabetes.

At Max Institute of Minimal Access, Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery, over 500 gastric bypass and sleeve gastrectomy surgeries are performed and have been witness to the life transforming experiences of our morbidly obese patients.

The patients benefit in terms of weight loss as well as cure or control of conditions like hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, obstructive sleep apnea (disturbed breathing while sleeping). Not only is their quality of life improved but they add years to their lives as well.