Weight Management, Micronutrients, and Supplements in Diabetes

Abstract

This year’s 39th International Symposium on Diabetes and Nutrition in Anavyssos, Greece, hosted a series of presentations and plenary lectures with a focus on the effects of weight loss, micronutrients, nutritional supplements, and alternative dietary patterns in the prevention and management of Type 2 diabetes (T2D) and cardiovascular risk reduction. Michael Lean discussed how diabetes remission can be achieved through weight loss using a low-energy diet (LED) or very low-energy diet (VLED), accompanied by continued long-term support from specialised healthcare professionals. Jeffrey Mechanick discussed the importance and impact of early intervention on T2D and cardiovascular disease (CVD). He emphasised that T2D should be seen not just at the point of disease, but on a spectrum from prediabetes to complications, with early interventions having significant impact on not only the progression of T2D, but also into the latter stages.Simin Liu presented an integrative multilevel framework for causal inference to personalise cardiometabolic health, highlighting recent work investigating the roles of dietary minerals, environment metals, and genomics in relation to cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Several of the presentations included discussion of specific interventions. Daniel West discussed the use of whey protein (WP) and how it can help control postprandial glycaemic excursions (PGE) in people with T2D controlled on oral antihyperglycaemic drugs. Following this, Andrea Hawkinson discussed how a new supplement, mulberry leaf (Morus alba) extract (MLE), can significantly lower postprandial glucose response, as well as early insulin response, highlighting the need for further studies to evaluate its efficacy in people with T2D. Philip Atherton showed studies providing evidence that protein and essential amino acid (EAA) supplementation can help support muscle mass, which is especially essential for older people with T2D and sarcopenia. Finally, Jose-María López-Pedrosa spoke about how a supplement containing slow digestible carbohydrates (SDC), arginine, lysine, and β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyric acid (HMB) can help preserve muscle mass, as well as improve insulin resistance, in a rat model of diabetes.