Low Calorie Diets for Early-onset T2D

• Research type

  Research Study

• Full title

  A mixed methods study to evaluate the effectiveness and experience of Low Calorie Diets in people with Early-onset Type 2 Diabetes

• IRAS ID

  331904

• Contact name

  Shivani Misra

• Contact email

  s.misra@imperial.ac.uk

• Sponsor organisation

  Imperial College, London

• Duration of Study in the UK

  3 years, 10 months, 1 days

• Research summary

  Early-onset Type 2 diabetes (T2D), diagnosed under 40-years, is a significant public health problem because:
  1. It has a more aggressive progression compared to later diagnosis, with affected individuals needing insulin more quickly, at greater risk of diabetes complications, and reduced life expectancy
  2. Affected individuals, often living with more than one long-term condition, are of working age and often have young families
  3. It affects more commonly, those living in socio-economic deprivation, from minority ethnic groups, and women.
  4. Numbers affected are rising rapidly

  Low-calorie diets can improve T2D, leading to remission in some cases, which has led to the NHS Path-to-Remission programme. However, very few younger adults and people from non-white ethnicities were included in prior research . Early data from the programme suggests younger adults and Asian people may benefit less but it remains unclear why.

  This study aims to explore the effect and experience of low-calorie diets in young adults (aged 18-39) from White and South Asian backgrounds who are participating in Path-to-Remission.

  60 participants will be studied before and after consuming a low-calorie diet for 12-weeks, to determine changes in insulin production, pancreas and liver fat, metabolic blood tests and body composition. Urine samples will be collected to monitor diet-adherence. At 12 months, weight and diabetes blood tests will be checked.
  10-15 participants from 3 groups; 1) those who complete the diet, 2) who start it but discontinue and 3) those who decline to start the diet will be interviewed before the diet starts (all groups) and at the end or when they stop (group 1&2) to discuss their expectations, motivations & experiences of the programme.

  These studies will better understand the changes occurring in younger adults undergoing low-calorie diets and whether modifications to the programme are needed to improve outcomes in this high-risk group.
  

• REC name

  South Central - Hampshire B Research Ethics Committee

• REC reference

  26/SC/0177

• Date of REC Opinion

  2 Jun 2026

• REC opinion

  Favourable Opinion