Testosterone Therapy Improves Insulin Sensitivity in Type 2 Diabetes

Men with both type 2 diabetes and low testosterone levels can significantly benefit from testosterone treatment, according to a recent study.

Previous research has shown a link between testosterone levels and decreased insulin sensitivity, but the potential beneficial effects of testosterone therapy in patients with diabetes is less well understood.
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“We hypothesized that testosterone may be an anti-inflammatory and insulin sensitizing agent since it has been known for some time that testosterone reduces adiposity and increases skeletal muscle,” researchers explained.

To further examine this issue, researchers conducted a randomized, double-blind study of 94 men with type 2 diabetes, 44 of which had low testosterone levels. Those with low testosterone were randomized to either testosterone injection or placebo every week for 24 weeks.

Overall, testosterone therapy was associated with a reduction in total body fat of 3 kilograms, and increase in muscle mass by 3 kilograms, and a dramatic increase in insulin sensitivity (32% increase in uptake of glucose) and a 12 milligram per deciliter decrease in fasting glucose levels.

“This is the first definitive evidence that testosterone is an insulin sensitizer and hence a metabolic hormone,” they concluded.

Researchers noted that future studies are needed to test how testosterone therapy could impact insulin resistance in specific patient populations, such as those with chronic renal failure and hypogonadism.

—Michael Potts

Reference:

University at Buffalo. Study provides definitive evidence that testosterone replacement makes Type 2 diabetic men more sensitive to insulin [press release]. November 30, 2015. http://www.buffalo.edu/news/releases/2015/11/053.html.