The first evidence that diabetes can be reversed came from bariatric surgery. Blood sugar levels of patients who had bariatric surgery for treatment of obesity normalized.

In 10 years of follow up of patients, 90% of these patients remained free of diabetes. The fact that patients who had had bariatric surgery normalized blood sugar level in 7 days’ post-surgery, even before losing weight signifies the importance of decreased calorie intake. Thus, it was, in fact, the decreased calorie intake associated with bariatric surgery that leads to normalization of blood glucose levels.

Bariatric surgery is an age-old procedure that involves making several changes to a patient’s digestive system to reduce the amount of food their stomach can hold.

These surgeries of the stomach or intestines allow a person eat and drink less at any given time has mostly been used to help people with extreme obesity to lose weight.

It is recommended for a person whose body mass Index (BMI) is above 40 and had tried other weight loss interventions using both diet and exercise but had not been successful.

Patients with serious health problems like heart disease, type 2 diabetes and other ailment related to heavy weight also undertake this procedure.

In type 2 diabetes, the surgery controls the condition without the need for diabetic medications.

Studies have shown that patients lose up to 25 per cent of their body weight compared with traditional weight-loss methods.  More than three quarter of type 2 diabetic patients achieved better blood sugar control.

For patients seeking just to cut weight, studies have shown that they achieve about two-thirds in loss.

Doctors might prescribe different ways to do the surgeries to a patient. Usually there are two ways;

First is restrictive surgeries, this procedure reduces the size of stomach and slows down digestion of food.

There is also a Malabsorptive/restrictive surgery which involves reducing the size of stomach and also removing parts of the digestive system.

Since the first weight loss surgery was performed in early 1950s by Dr. A.J. Kremen, there has been improvements and alteration of how the procedure is done.

History timeline

Here is a timeline to take you through the different phases of Bariatric surgeries.

1954- Dr. Kremen and his team connected the patient’s upper and lower intestines to bypass where calories are absorbed. The procedure was termed as Gastric Bypass surgery.

1963- A procedure known as Open Gastric Bypass was performed: It involved cutting the stomach open to create a new stomach and bypass intestines.

1970- There was Open Gastroplasty: this entailed splitting the stomach into two parts.

1978-Gastric Band: is where doctors place a band around the stomach of a patient to reduce its size.

1980- Vertical Banded Gastroplasty: it involved stapling the stomach to split it into two sections.

1986-Duodenal Switch: the procedure reduces the stomach size and bypasses the intestines.

1994-Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass: It is a modern procedure that involves stapling the top part of the stomach, separate it from the bottom to create a small stomach. Video cameras are used to trace the stomach during the operation.

1997-Open Gastric sleeve: Involves removal of 80 percent of your stomach and join the remaining portions together to make a new banana-sized stomach.

2000-Laparoscopic Gastric Sleeve: During this operation, 80 per cent of the stomach is removed leaving a narrow tube but intestines are retained.

While this course of treatment is still relatively inaccessible, basic weight loss can be just as effective.

Over the last couple of years, studies have now focused on the low carbohydrate diet/hypocaloric diet on management and control of diabetes. The DIRECT study, a primary care-based study done in Scotland and Tyneside revealed that at 12 months, half of the participants achieved remission to a non-diabetic state and off antidiabetic drugs.