More than 25 million Americans are living with diabetes, according to the National Institute of Health. They include men and women, boys and girls, and a lot of people who aren’t overweight in the slightest. Researchers, however, are hoping every person living with the disease can benefit from weight loss surgery.
It’s long been known that people with type 2 diabetes who undergo gastric bypass surgery often see significant improvement in their symptoms. This is because the small intestine changes after gastric bypass surgery–it begins producing a molecule called GLUT-1, which helps the body better manage glucose.
Glucose, of course, is another name for blood sugar, which is the primary cause of type 2 diabetes. When the body produces too much glucose–or can’t properly manage the level of glucose in the blood stream–type 2 diabetes often appears along with its potentially debilitating symptoms.
People living with type 2 diabetes are at risk for kidney problems, diminished eyesight and heart attack and stroke. It’s no wonder researchers are so interested in learning more about how gastric bypass helps people living with the disease.
One particular researcher, Dr. Erini Nestoridi, recently had an article published in Science, a highly regarded medical journal. In the article, Nestoridi explains that he intends to find a way to make small intestines in people who have not undergone gastric bypass surgery to mimic what happens in those who have had the surgery.
He’s already done it in lab rats. If successful in humans, Nestoridi and his fellow researchers could turn the small intestines into a “dumping ground” for excess glucose, helping people living with diabetes naturally treat their symptoms and lead healthier lives without having to constantly measure their blood-sugar levels or inject themselves with insulin.
For more than 25 million Americans, these medical breakthroughs offer the same kind of life-changing hope for a better life as gastric bypass does to those fighting a battle with obesity.
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