Intensive diet and exercise put diabetes in remission for 54%

An intensive low-calorie diet and exercise program put type 2 diabetes into remission for 54% of adults under 45 after 24 weeks, according to a ScienceDaily Health summary published Oct. 30.

The randomized clinical trial was small, with 96 adults who had obesity and were not using insulin, but the remission rate compared with 4% among those receiving usual care.

The findings were presented at the Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes and published in The Lancet Regional Health Americas, according to the ScienceDaily Health summary.

The trial tested adults aged 18 to 45 with early-onset type 2 diabetes at three research centers affiliated with the University of Leicester, McGill University and the University of Alberta.

The authors said: “Our findings demonstrate the feasibility and efficacy of combining structured aerobic and resistance exercise with a low energy diet in early-onset type 2 diabetes, supporting its potential to deliver substantial and holistic health and well-being benefits alongside diabetes remission.”

Participants assigned to the intensive program consumed 800 to 900 calories a day during the initial phase and did supervised aerobic and resistance exercise twice weekly, plus one independent session each week, for weeks 1 through 12. From weeks 13 through 24, they moved toward maintaining weight loss while continuing exercise independently.

Remission meant an HbA1c level below 6.5%, or 48 mmol/mol, without glucose-lowering medication for at least 12 weeks. HbA1c is a blood test that reflects average blood sugar over about three months.

The study randomly assigned 50 participants to the intervention and 46 to standard care between Sept. 24, 2021, and June 6, 2025. The group had a mean age of 38 years and a mean body-mass index of 35.2 kg/m2; 86 participants, or 90%, completed final assessments.

Weight change differed sharply between groups. Among participants with available data, average weight in the intervention group fell to 92.3 kg from 100.7 kg, while the control group fell to 102.0 kg from 103.2 kg.

After adjustment, the intensive-program group lost 7.5 kg more weight than the usual-care group, including 6.6 kg more fat loss. The researchers also reported preservation of fat-free mass and muscle during rapid weight loss.

The result applies most directly to adults aged 18 to 45 with type 2 diabetes and obesity who were not using insulin. It does not establish the same effect for older adults, people without obesity, insulin users, pregnant people or patients with advanced complications.

The study cannot show whether remission lasts beyond 24 weeks. It was open-label, meaning participants and researchers knew treatment assignments, although the main outcome assessment was blinded.

Safety data also require caution. No severe adverse events were reported, but at least one adverse event occurred in 43 of 50 intervention participants, compared with six of 46 receiving standard care; reported effects included constipation, headache, dizziness and fatigue, mostly early in the restrictive diet phase.

The authors said longer-term research is needed to test whether people maintain weight loss, muscle preservation and diabetes remission after returning to normal life outside the trial.

Source: ScienceDaily Health summary of research from the European Association for the Study of Diabetes, Oct. 30, 2026.

Atlas360 reports health research and does not provide medical advice.