Effects of Short-term Dietary Intervention for Obese Patients with Abnormal Glucose Metabolism

Background Recent studies show that dietary interventions can induce remission of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in individuals with overweight or obesity, but related evidence from China remains limited. Objective To evaluate the clinical efficacy of a short-term dietary intervention in obese patients with abnormal glucose metabolism and to examine its impact on hepatopancreatic fat content and pancreatic β-cell function. Methods From March 2020 to August 2022, 60 obese adults with abnormal glucose metabolism attending the Obesity Clinic of the Department of Endocrinology, Putuo Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, were randomized to a low-calorie balanced diet (LCBD; n=30) or a meal-replacement diet (MRD; n=30) for 3 months. At baseline and post-intervention, group differences in changes in body composition, laboratory indices, and imaging examination were compared. Results Groups were comparable at baseline in sex distribution, body composition, laboratory variables, and imaging measures (all P>0.05). After intervention, both groups exhibited significant reductions from baseline in body weight (BW), body mass index (BMI), WC, body fat percentage (BFP), visceral fat area (VFA), subcutaneous fat area (SFA), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), 2-hour plasma glucose during oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT 2 hPG), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), HOMA-β, HOMA-IR, liver FF, pancreatic FF, and lipid measures (P