Effectiveness of weight loss in the elderly with Type 2 diabetes mellitus

We compared cardiovascular risk factors in younger and older patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus and higher than normal body mass index (BMI) and percentage of body fat (% BF) after a 1-yr weight-reduction program in order to clarify the benefits of weight loss in the overweight elderly. Groups of 52 younger and 50 older patients consumed low-calorie diets and participated in a simple moderate-intensity aerobic exercise program for 1 yr. At three times during the program (start, 6 months, 12 months), 10 measures were taken for each participant: BMI, total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), % BF, waist circumference (WC), fasting plasma glucose, hemoglobulin A_1c(HbA _1c), leptin, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), and adiponectin levels. While changes in BMI, TC and TG were evidently the same in both age groups (p-value: 0.11, 0.33, 0.70, respectively), raw figures for change in % BF, WC, fasting plasma glucose, HbA1c, leptin, hs-CRP, and adiponectin values were significantly greater in the older group (p-value: 0.02, 0.01, 0.03, 0.04, 0.02, 0.01, 0.03 respectively). However, after adjusting for % BF and WC, these changes were no longer significant (p-values: 0.08, 0.07, 0.08, 0.06, 0.10, respectively), indicating that weight loss is equally beneficial for overweight patients with Type 2 diabetes in both age groups. Benefits were gained mainly through reduced body fat. Simple life-style modification of adding 20-min daily aerobic exercise and an adequate but restricted calorie diet is more effective in elderly diabetic patients.