This Beats Metformin at Preventing Diabetes (21-Year Study Proves It)
When it comes to treating type 2 diabetes, I’m a fan of both lifestyle changes and metformin.
Lifestyle interventions are proven to help prevent and even reverse the condition.
And metformin not only controls blood glucose levels but also can help those with type 2 diabetes live longer.
That’s a pretty powerful win-win.
Now, a study pits lifestyle changes against metformin in a head-to-head showdown to see which works better at preventing diabetes.
You might be surprised by the results.
Back in 1996, researchers studied 3,234 patients with prediabetes, averaging 51 years old, to determine whether lifestyle modifications or metformin would be more effective at preventing the progression to type 2 diabetes.
The lifestyle modifications included following a healthy diet and engaging in regular exercise.
After three years, metformin reduced diabetes risk 31 percent—but lifestyle modifications reduced the risk by a whopping 58 percent.
Those are impressive short-term results, but what stood out to me was that these protective effects lasted for decades.
Twenty-one years later, those in the original metformin group had a 17 percent reduced risk of developing diabetes, while the lifestyle modifications group had a 24 percent reduced risk.
This study highlights three crucial facts about type 2 diabetes.
First, adopting a healthy lifestyle is the best way to prevent type 2 diabetes—even in those with the highest risk.
Second, while metformin certainly has many benefits, lifestyle changes are more effective at preventing diabetes than the drug.
Third, even if you don’t start until mid-life (the average age at the start of the study was 51), making lifestyle changes can impact your risk of type 2 diabetes for years to come.
As I highlighted a few weeks ago, working with your doctor to prevent or reverse diabetes significantly increases your chances of success. If you missed that issue, you can catch up here.
While you certainly can “go it alone,” you shouldn’t have to.
I recommend finding a doctor who feels the same way.
P.S. Diabetes drug boosts longevity 30%!
View Sources
Knowler, William Cabbas, Caroline et al., Long-term effects and effect heterogeneity of lifestyle and metformin interventions on type 2 diabetes incidence over 21 years in the US Diabetes Prevention Program randomised clinical trial, The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, Volume 13, Issue 6, 469 – 481
