Which diabetes drug helps lose belly fat better?
Comparing the effects of ipragliflozin versus metformin on visceral fat reduction and metabolic dysfunction in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes treated with sitagliptin: A prospective, multicentre, open‐label, blinded‐endpoint, randomized controlled study (PRIME‐V study)
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Two diabetes drugs were tested in Japanese patients already on another medicine. One drug (ipragliflozin) helped lose belly fat and improve blood sugar control in a different way than the other (metformin), which lowered blood sugar more but didn’t reduce belly fat as much.
Surprising Findings
Metformin increased subcutaneous fat while ipragliflozin reduced it
Most people think all diabetes drugs help with weight loss, but metformin actually increased outer fat by 2.15% — which is counterintuitive and rarely discussed.
Practical Takeaways
If you’re struggling with belly fat despite good blood sugar control, ask your doctor about SGLT2 inhibitors like ipragliflozin — they may help you lose fat even if you’re not losing weight.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Two diabetes drugs were tested in Japanese patients already on another medicine. One drug (ipragliflozin) helped lose belly fat and improve blood sugar control in a different way than the other (metformin), which lowered blood sugar more but didn’t reduce belly fat as much.
Surprising Findings
Metformin increased subcutaneous fat while ipragliflozin reduced it
Most people think all diabetes drugs help with weight loss, but metformin actually increased outer fat by 2.15% — which is counterintuitive and rarely discussed.
Practical Takeaways
If you’re struggling with belly fat despite good blood sugar control, ask your doctor about SGLT2 inhibitors like ipragliflozin — they may help you lose fat even if you’re not losing weight.
Publication
Journal
Diabetes, Obesity & Metabolism
Year
2019
Authors
M. Koshizaka, K. Ishikawa, Ryoichi Ishibashi, Y. Maezawa, Kenichi Sakamoto, D. Uchida, Susumu Nakamura, Masaya Yamaga, H. Yokoh, Akina Kobayashi, Shunichiro Onishi, Kazuki Kobayashi, J. Ogino, Naotake Hashimoto, H. Tokuyama, F. Shimada, Emi Ohara, T. Ishikawa, Mayumi Shoji, Shintaro Ide, Kana Ide, Yusuke Baba, A. Hattori, T. Kitamoto, T. Horikoshi, Ryota Shimofusa, Sho Takahashi, K. Nagashima, Yasunori Sato, M. Takemoto, L. Newby, K. Yokote
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Claims (9)
Visceral fat is metabolically active tissue that disrupts insulin sensitivity and metabolic function, and tesamorelin reduces it through mechanisms that improve fat quality, muscle composition, and mitochondrial efficiency, leading to long-term metabolic resilience.
When Japanese adults with type 2 diabetes take sitagliptin plus ipragliflozin for 24 weeks, their outer fat layer shrinks, but those taking metformin gain outer fat, with a clear difference between the two treatments.
For Japanese adults with type 2 diabetes on sitagliptin, metformin lowers blood sugar more effectively than ipragliflozin after 24 weeks, with a clear difference in how much HbA1c drops.
For Japanese adults with type 2 diabetes on sitagliptin, metformin reduces bad cholesterol more than ipragliflozin, which actually raises bad cholesterol levels, with a clear difference between the two treatments.
For Japanese adults with type 2 diabetes taking sitagliptin, taking ipragliflozin for 24 weeks makes belly fat inside the body decrease more than taking metformin, with a noticeable difference in fat loss.