Diabetes is a chronic health condition that affects how the body turns food into energy.

When a person eats, the body breaks down most food into sugar (glucose) and releases it into the bloodstream. When blood sugar goes up, it signals the pancreas to release insulin. Insulin acts as a key to let the blood sugar into the body’s cells for use as energy. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes in the population aged between 20 and 79 years has been increasing since 2015 and is expected to continue increasing until 2033.

There are three main types of diabetes: type 1, type 2 and gestational (pregnancy) diabetes. Of the three, type 2 diabetes is the most common and is often associated with lifestyle factors such as being overweight, having a sedentary lifestyle and eating a diet of poor quality. In type 2 diabetes, the body becomes resistant to insulin or the pancreas does not produce enough insulin to meet the body’s needs. This type of diabetes can be managed with lifestyle changes, oral medications and, in some cases, by insulin treatment.

The cause of diabetes varies depending on the type. For type 2 diabetes, a combination of genetic and lifestyle factors is usually responsible. Being overweight or obese increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. While the prevalence of type 2 diabetes is increasing in adults, so are the solutions and devices for the treatment of obesity.

Fractyl Health, a metabolic therapeutics company, has recently reported positive results for its hydrothermal ablation device, Revita. Revita is an outpatient endoscopic procedure that uses hydrothermal ablation to resurface the mucosal lining of the duodenum, the area of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract that is responsible for nutrient sensing and signalling to the brain. The data was collected from a German real-world registry and involved the first 11 patients who completed at least 12 months of follow-up. Out of these 11 patients, 10 reported that the number of medications being taken remained stable or decreased.

Fractyl Health is not the only company to turn its focus to obesity. Type 2 diabetes is a serious health condition, and can often be prevented or delayed through lifestyle changes. Maintaining a healthy weight is one of the key strategies for reducing the risk of diabetes.