Obese children who don’t suffer from type 2 diabetes but receive Metformin while improving their diet and exercise habits appear to slightly reduce in weight. However, as reported in a new review of studies, it isn’t much more weight than children who just make the lifestyle changes.
Evidence suggests that diabetes medication Metformin combined with lifestyle changes influences weight reduction in obese kids. However, the drug doesn’t result in significant loss of weight, declared the leading researcher Marian McDonagh.
Children obesity is a critical health concern in the USA where almost 18% of children aged 6-19 years old are ranked as obese. According to the background information of the study, Metformin got the FDA approval for type 2 diabetes in children older 10 and adults, however doctors use it off-label to cure obese kids who don’t suffer from diabetes.
The researchers analyzed 14 clinical trials involving about 1000 obese or overweight children aged 10 -16 and concluded that 5 – 10% reductions in weight in adults are needed to lower the risk of health problems associated with obesity. The average amount of weight reduction in children receiving Metformin was less than 5%.
Mrs. McDonagh says that with children obesity on the rise and its major long-term complications for the child’s health as an adult, doctors and parents are looking for measures that will secure significant reduction in weight. As Metformin has been applied in type 2 diabetes treatment over a number of years and often leads to reduction in weight, it has been applied in off-label obesity treatment in kids.
The report came through in JAMA Pediatrics online journal
Dr. David Katz from Yale University claims that on a like metformin is efficacious for both prevention and treatment of diabetes. Dr. Katz who wasn’t involved in the research asserts that the medicine promotes reduction in weight as a byproduct of insulin resistance treatment. Insulin resistance is a syndrome when the body cells become less responsive to insulin that helps control the blood sugar level. This condition is a step towards type 2 diabetes. Dr. Katz declared that during clinical trials obese children were treated without consideration of their insulin status, the fact is more likely to explain the lackluster results. He also added that Metformin was useful in some, but not all, obesity types.
On the contrary, eating healthy and leading an active lifestyle is efficacious in nearly all obesity cases, said Dr. Katz. He added that the best cure for obese and overweight children is better use of their forks and feet, and not medicaments.
Dr. William Muinos, from Miami gastroenterological Children’s hospital affirms that he administers Metformin only to those obese kids who are in danger of type 2 diabetes. Dr. Muinos also says that in that subgroup of kids this medicine can be of help in improving insulin resistance incited by increased body fat. “Metformin produces modest reduction in weight by reducing the amount of body insulin and improving insulin resistance”, Muinos added. However, the drug shouldn’t be applied for weight loss alone. It is an adjuvant treatment, which must be initiated by lifestyle changes. “Diet and exercise – that’s the key,” he concluded.
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