Viagra to join the war on diabetes, by warding off the onset

Viagra could help ward off the onset of diabetes

THE anti-impotence drug Viagra could help ward off the onset of diabetes, according to new research.

 

A study has revealed that taking the male potency pill also cuts the risk of heart and kidney disease in people with pre-diabetes.

Researchers found the medication sildenafil – sold as Viagra and under other trade names – improves insulin sensitivity in people with pre-diabetes and also reduces a biological marker that signals heightened risk of kidney and heart disease.

Insulin resistance precedes the development of Type 2 diabetes, which is characterised by high blood sugar levels and ensues when a person cannot produce enough of the hormone insulin.

 

Past research showed that without intervention as many as 30 per cent of people with pre-diabetes are likely to develop Type 2 diabetes within five years.

But scientists now believe that the anti-impotency drug could provide a possible course of treatment.

Dr Nancy Brown, of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in the US where the research was undertaken, said: “We need additional strategies to help slow the progression from prediabetes to diabetes.

 

Viagra could also cut the risk of heart and kidney disease

 

Viagra improves insulin sensitivity in people with pre-diabetes

 

Sildenafil and related drugs could offer a potential avenue for addressing the rising number of diabetes diagnoses

Dr Nancy Brown, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine

 

“Weight loss and exercise regimens can be difficult to maintain, and some current medications have been limited by concerns about adverse effects.

“Sildenafil and related drugs could offer a potential avenue for addressing the rising number of diabetes diagnoses.”

Experts in the UK welcomed the research. Dr Alasdair Rankin, Diabetes UK’s director of research, said: “The findings of this study raise the question of whether this blood-vessel relaxing chemical might be useful for the reduction of Type 2 diabetes risk, but much more research would be needed before we could be confident that is the case.

"But what we do know is that everyone can reduce their risk of Type 2 diabetes by maintaining a healthy weight through regular exercise and a healthy diet.”

 



Viagra inhibites an enzyme that breaks down a natural blood vessel-relaxing chemical called cGMP



Viagra, which is known for treating erectile dysfunction, works by inhibiting an enzyme that breaks down a natural blood vessel-relaxing chemical called cGMP.

Other drugs also are in development that would increase levels of cGMP in the body.

The study, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, involved 51 overweight people with pre-diabetes being treated with Viagra or a matching placebo.