By Shrabasti Bhattacharya
Source Medscape
TOPLINE:
Two days a week of a medically supervised energy-restricted diet may lower blood glucose levels in adults with overweight or obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D).
METHODOLOGY:
- Daily calorie restrictions and increased physical activity improve glycemic control and induce diabetes remission in patients with T2D, but these approaches are challenging to adhere to.
- Researchers tested whether 2 days a week (a 5:2 regimen) of either a very low-calorie formula diet or a “weekend warrior” physical activity pattern would be effective and more convenient.
- The three-arm IDEATE study enrolled 326 Asian participants with overweight or mild obesity (body mass index, 25.0-39.9) and T2D (diagnosed within prior 2 years; A1c, 7.0-8.9%; not on insulin) and randomly assigned them to receive a diet intervention, an exercise intervention, or routine lifestyle education (control group) for 12 weeks.
- The diet intervention group received an energy-restricted diet of 790 kcal/d on 2 days each week, and the exercise intervention group performed high-intensity interval training (4 minutes of aerobic activity, with a 10-minute total warm-up and cool-down) and resistance training twice a week (four exercises, two sets of eight to 12 repetitions).
- The primary outcome was the change in glycemic control between the diet or exercise intervention group and the control group after 12 weeks. Follow-up continued up to 1 year after intervention.