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Insulin and weight gain: Keep the pounds off
Insulin and weight gain often go hand in hand, but weight control is possible. If you need insulin therapy, here's how to minimize — or avoid — weight gain.
By Mayo Clinic staffInsulin and weight gain often go hand in hand. But if you need insulin therapy, you're not necessarily doomed to gain unwanted weight. Start by understanding how insulin therapy works. Then take steps to minimize — or avoid — weight gain while you're taking insulin.
The link between insulin and weight gain
Weight gain is a common side effect for people who take insulin — a hormone that regulates the absorption of sugar (glucose). The more insulin you use to control your blood sugar level, the more glucose that gets into your cells and the less glucose that's wasted in your urine. Glucose that your cells don't use accumulates as fat. If you continue to eat as you did before, you'll likely gain weight when you start taking insulin.
Think about it this way: Before starting insulin, you could eat more food than you needed without gaining weight because your body didn't use the food properly. But with insulin, your body uses food properly, and you may need less food than you think.
Next page(1 of 2)
- McCulloch DK. Initial management of blood glucose in type 2 diabetes mellitus. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed June 8, 2009.
- What I need to know about diabetes medicines. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/medicines_ez/. Accessed June 8, 2009.
- About insulin. American Diabetes Association. http://www.diabetes.org/youthzone/about-insulin.jsp. Accessed June 8, 2009.
- Heller S. Weight gain during insulin therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice. 2004;65S:S23.
- Affenito SG. Breakfast: A missed opportunity. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2007;107:565.
- 2008 physical activity guidelines for Americans. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. http://www.health.gov/paguidelines/. Accessed June 8, 2009.
