Breakthrough in diabetes prevention

A new study conducted by a McMaster University medical researcher indicates that the correct type of drug therapy can curb type 2 diabetes.
The expert, Hertzel Gerstei, is a professor in the departments of medicine and clinical epidemiology and biostatistics. He presented his discovery in the Lancet, a leading UK medical journal, and also to the European Association for the Study of Diabetes in Copenhagen last month.
Gerstein examined 5,000 people throughout 21 countries who were at risk of developing diabetes. He found that those who took the drugs ramipril and rosiglatzone over a three year period could prevent or delay type 2 diabetes.
Gerstein said: “The trials showed that a drug used and approved to treat diabetes, rosiglitazone – which is sold under the brand name Avandia – can also prevent or delay diabetes when given to people at high risk of future diabetes.”
Gerstein was keen to stress that no drug was a ‘magic bullet’ prevention for diabetes. The traditional methods of preventing type 2 diabetes – eating a healthier diet and increasing exercise with the aim of losing weight were still necessary. The drugs, although not yet approved for diabetes prevention, could be a vital enhancer for some people in their fight against the disease .