Red flags have been raised in the management of obesity among diabetes patients. According to the Korean Diabetes Association's 'Diabetes Fact Sheet 2024,' half (53.8%) of diabetes patients are obese, and among them, 61.2% have abdominal obesity. Since body weight is a crucial factor in determining the prognosis of diabetes, appropriate measures are necessary. How should obesity and diabetes be managed?

 

 

Obesity and diabetes negatively affect each other, with abdominal obesity being particularly deadly.

2. Review your eating habits, limit your calorie intake, and exercise concurrently!

 

Obesity and diabetes have a mutually detrimental effect.

Obesity and diabetes are closely interconnected. They pose health risks individually, but when they occur simultaneously, they become even more deadly. People with obesity have a 4 to 6 times higher risk of developing diabetes than those with normal weight, and obese diabetic patients have a worse prognosis than diabetic patients with normal weight.

When body fat accumulates inside the body, fat also accumulates in the cells where insulin acts, leading to inflammation and causing insulin resistance. Insulin resistance means that even if the pancreas produces a lot of insulin, it does not function properly in the body. The higher the insulin resistance, the more difficult it becomes to control blood sugar, and the poorer the treatment response. Poor blood sugar control increases the risk of microvascular and macrovascular complications.

 

Director of Public Relations at the Korean Diabetes Association, Professor Choi Sung-hee of the Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, stated, "In cases of obesity, conditions such as hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and kidney function deterioration can rapidly worsen. Therefore, patients who already have hyperlipidemia, hypertension, proteinuria, or a history of myocardial infarction, stroke, or arteriosclerosis should manage their obesity more thoroughly."

 

Obesity with a protruding belly is more deadly

In diabetic patients, abdominal obesity presents a more serious problem. Abdominal obesity is defined as a waist circumference of 90 cm or more in men and 85 cm or more in women. Fat is divided into subcutaneous fat, which accumulates under the skin, and visceral fat, which accumulates inside the body cavity or between organs, with the latter having a more direct impact on health. When fat accumulates in the abdomen, the increased space makes it easier for visceral fat to build up.

 

Having a lot of visceral fat increases insulin resistance, making blood sugar regulation and fat breakdown difficult. Moreover, as fat continues to accumulate and there is no more space to store it, ectopic fat deposits form directly in organs such as the pancreas and muscles. When ectopic fat accumulates in the pancreas, it reduces insulin secretion capacity and further increases insulin resistance. Naturally, this also raises the risk of developing complications.

 

 

A study from Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China, indicates that regardless of other obesity-related indices, an increase in abdominal fat percentage is associated with a higher risk of developing ophthalmic complications. A joint study by Seoul Asan Medical Center and Soongsil University found that the degree of abdominal obesity in diabetic patients can increase the risk of glioma occurrence by up to 37%.

 

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Aerobic exercise includes brisk walking, cycling, swimming, and others.

Choose the type that you can continuously practice safely.

Pull in the abdomen as if to make the belly touch the back.

I recommend a draw-in exercise that you hold for about 30 seconds with effort.

 

I've never heard of drone exercise before.

Are you bearing down and holding your breath?

I should look into it.