Obesity and the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes mellitus

The increasing prevalence of obesity worldwide has many experts concerned about the worsening health of a large proportion of the population. It is well recognized that obesity is associated with a higher mortality, an increased risk of hypertension and hyperlipidemia, cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, osteoarthritis, gall bladder disease and possibly some cancers. Currently it is estimated that over two thirds of adults in the United States are overweight and nearly one third are clinically obese.1 Of special concern is the rapid increase in obesity among children. Other countries both developed and developing are experiencing similar trends.……

Increased BMR in Overweight and Obese Patients with Type 2 Diabetes may Result from an Increased Fat-free Mass

The study aimed to determine the relationships between the basal metabolic rate（BMR） and body composition of overweight and obese Chinese adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus（DM）. This cross-sectional clinical study enrolled 193 Chinese adults with type 2 DM who were overweight（24 kg/m2≤BMI〈28 kg/m2, n=99）, or obese（BMI ≥28 kg/m2, n=94）. Ninety-seven adults with normal BMIs, including 50 DM patients and 47 healthy adults, were recruited as a control group. BMR was measured by indirect calorimetry; predicted BMR was calculated according to the Schofield equation; and the relationships between BMR, body composition, and biochemical results were determined by the Pearson correlation. The results showed that obese DM patients had significantly higher BMRs than both overweight patients（P〈0.05） and patients with normal BMI did（P〈0.05）. The measured BMR was significantly lower than the predicted BMR（P〈0.05） in all groups. Obese and overweight DM patients had significantly greater weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, BMI, body surface area, body fat percentage, fat mass, and fat-free mass than patients with normal BMI. Except for waist circumference, these body composition measurements were significantly increased in obese DM patients when compared with those in overweight DM patients（P〈0.05）. Fat-free mass was closely correlated with BMR in both DM patients（r=0.874, P〈0.01） and in healthy controls（r=0.902, P〈0.01）. It was concluded that overweight and obese Chinese adults with type 2 DM had increased BMRs compared with normal-weight controls, which may result from the difference in fat-free mass.

Therapy to Obese Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus:How Far Will We Go Down the Wrong Road?

Traditional glucose-lowering chemical agents, including various types of insulin and insulin secretagogues, insulin sensitizers, gliptins, etc., are based on diabetic pathogenesis of insulin resistance(IR) and islet insufficiency. Numerous evidence-based medical studies have shown that these traditional hypoglycemic chemical agents do not provide cardiovascular benefit to patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2 DM) and may even increase the risk of all-cause mortality. Based on research evidence published to date, these studies show that overload of energy could increase the incidence and prevalence of T2 DM, and reduction in the heat load can significantly reduce the incidence of T2 DM. Therefore, the essence of T2 DM is heat overload, meaning heat overload is the etiology of obese T2 DM. At the same time, results of numerous studies show that heat overloading is the cause of IR. IR and islet dysfunction are protective factors in intervening with heat overload.These drugs, which are based on the mechanisms of IR and islet insufficiency, increase caloric reserve and cause or worsen obesity, which is equivalent to exacerbating the basic etiology and the cardiovascular risk factor of T2 DM. Thus, a reasonable strategy for prevention and treatment of obese T2 DM appears to promote the negative balance of calories and the elimination of caloric reserves. Chinese herbal medicines can promote negative balance of heat in many aspects, which can bring new hope for prevention and treatment of T2 DM.