Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Weight loss diet for overweight diabetic cats improves blood sugar
By Jørgensen, Freja K et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2026·Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: A two-center, randomized controlled trial to determine the effect of 12 weeks of caloric restriction with a novel diet in overweight cats with diabetes mellitus.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of 72 overweight cats with diabetes was studied to see if a special diet combined with weight loss could help them manage their condition better. Half of the cats were put on a calorie-restricted diet while the other half maintained their weight. After 12 weeks, the cats on the diet had a much higher chance of going into remission from diabetes and lost more weight compared to those who didn’t change their diet. Additionally, the insulin needs for the dieting cats decreased significantly, showing that the diet not only helped with weight loss but also improved their overall blood sugar control.
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Abstract
BACKGROUND: Obesity is associated with insulin resistance and affects glycemic control in diabetic patients. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: Assess the impact of 12-week caloric restriction on remission and glycemic control in overweight diabetic cats using a prospective, randomized controlled trial. ANIMALS: Seventy-two overweight (body condition score ≥ 6/9) client-owned insulin-treated diabetic cats, randomized either to caloric restriction (intervention, 32; target approximately 2% weekly weight loss) or body weight maintenance (control, 40). METHODS: All cats received a novel therapeutic diabetic diet, suitable for weight reduction, for 12 weeks (%metabolizable energy [protein/fat/nitrogen-free extract]: dry [49.4/24/26.6]; wet [63.2/25.3/11.5]). Physical examination, serum biochemistry, home blood glucose curves (BGC), diabetic clinical score, and quality of life questionnaires were performed on weeks: -1, 4, 8, and 12. Insulin dose was recorded and glycemic variability (SD of BGC) was calculated. Induction of diabetic remission was the primary outcome measure. Data were analyzed using regression and linear mixed models. RESULTS: By week 12, intervention had 2.1 times higher probability of remission (16/32) compared with controls (12/40, P = .04). Weight loss was 7.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 5.7-8.7) for the intervention versus 2.7% (95% CI, 1.3-4.1, P < .001) for controls. For cats not achieving remission, glycemic variability decreased 45% (95% CI, 26-65) and 7% (95% CI, 16-21) for intervention and control cats, respectively (P = .01), insulin-dose decreased by 36% (95% CI, 2-70) for intervention and increased 28% (95% CI, 3-53, P = .004) for controls. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Caloric restriction, using a therapeutic diabetic diet suitable for weight reduction increased the probability of remission and improved glycemic control in overweight diabetic cats.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41818731/