Low-Calorie Diet Plus Exercise Puts Early-Onset Type 2 Diabetes into Remission in Half of Patients

Researchers from the UK and Canada, led by Kaberi Dasgupta at McGill University, have published results from a randomized trial in The Lancet Regional Health – Americas showing that early-onset type 2 diabetes can be reversed through lifestyle changes alone. The study enrolled 96 adults with early-onset type 2 diabetes and obesity who were not on insulin therapy, with an average age of 38. The trial ran across three centers in Canada and the UK. Roughly half the participants were assigned to an intensive lifestyle program — an 800–900 calorie daily diet alongside twice-weekly supervised aerobic and resistance exercise sessions and one independent session per week — while the rest continued their normal routines. After 12 weeks, those on the program switched to a weight-maintenance diet and continued exercising independently for a further 12 weeks. At the 24-week mark, 27 of the 50 participants in the intervention group had achieved remission without glucose-lowering medication, compared with just two participants in the control group. Those in the intervention group also preserved muscle mass and strength, recorded a 10.3 percent increase in respiratory fitness relative to body mass, and showed lower resting blood pressure and heart rate. The left ventricles of their hearts appeared healthier in shape and structure, and participants reported reduced diabetes-related distress and improved quality of life. Dasgupta noted the remission rates were at the upper end of those previously reported for trials of similar duration. Because early-onset type 2 diabetes — typically diagnosed at age 45 or younger — tends to progress more rapidly than later-onset disease, the authors called for longer studies to confirm how durable these gains prove to be.