How much will a change of diet improve insulin resistance?

Question

I was diagnosed with PCOS 5 years ago, but was not insulin resistant then, so I did not research it. I had blood work done last week and it just came back that I now have insulin resistance.

I'm going to an endocrinologist in 2 weeks to basically discuss what I can do to treat this, but I've only heard bad things about Metformin.

So, I would rather not go on Metformin because of the side affects and would rather improve insulin resistance with diet.

My question is NOT ABOUT SPECIFIC DIETS that help isulin resistance. There is so much information and recipes out there.

My question is how much will a change of diet improve insulin resistance without medication?

Answer 1

The answer isn't as simple as the question. There are many factors involved and the amount of weight a person carries and how it affects insulin resistance varies from person to person. Some people can lose 10 pounds and that will reduce insulin resistance enough for the doctor to take them back off the medications. Others can lose 30 pounds and see some improvement but not enough to eliminate the need for the medications. If your situation has been caught very early on, your chances are better that diet can make a big difference. A side note on Metformin, it may help you lose that weight you want to lose to get back off the medication. I hope you find this helpful and good luck!

Answer 2

Weight loss may be helpful along with medication...if untreated, it will affect your chances of conception and the ability to have children.

Overweight women have higher rates of PCOS and insulin resistance.  

It can help a lot...check with the doctor to see if you even Metformin or the other medications, and if so, it may only be for a temporary period of time.  If you finally get control of your condition, they may cut back or eliminate the need for those medications.  Your main focus should be on your health and prevention of diabetes.

You should have a blood test to find out a certain level of a certain type of Hemoglobin:  HB1ac

It will be helpful in determining for how long you have had a high blood sugar and the problem of insulin resistance.  I'm sure at least one test on this for you has been done already...get the number so you know how far along you are.

Diet is helpful if you start to LOSE WEIGHT!!!  Losing weight also often times puts PCOS into remission.  If your blood sugar and triglycerides improve, you may regain some insulin control.  Insulin resistance is a precursor to diabetes...once you develop Diabetes, you will have an entirely new set of problems...so prevent it now.  It also will doubly impact your chances to conceive children if you are planning on that in the future.

Answer 3

If your dietary goal is to limit carbohydrates, then you have a good chance of avoiding large post-meal spikes in blood glucose, but in general you won't improve insulin resistance.  To get your fasting blood glucose down to a normal, or near normal, range requires some combination of weight loss, exercise or medication.

The following graph shows the result from one study of the relationship between weight loss and improvement in fasting glucose.  The blue area in the graph indicates that people whose fasting blood glucose was originally between 108 and 144 were able to get their numbers down to <108 by losing an average of 10 kg (22 pounds).  For those starting out with higher blood glucose readings, the amount of weight loss required was correspondingly higher - up to 26 kg (57.2 pounds) for those with initial blood glucose readings > 252.

Answer 4

a diet that results in weight loss will likely effect an improvement in insulin resistance.