Hi, I have read that unexplained weight loss can be a symptom of diabetes. I was wondering if someone could explain why weight loss can occur with diabetes. Thanks!

I think it is because the body tries to get rid of the glucose in the blood stream (when the muscles are not able to accept that glucose due to insulin resistance or lack of insulin) by excreting it in the urine. In effect, calories are leaving by way of sugar in the person's urine. That is also why the person feels very thirsty.

When sugar is not used effectively for energy, fat must be burned to a greater degree. Weight loss may occur (depending on other factors, such as calories consumed).

In the year before I was diagnosed, I had gone from drinking 2 liters or more of Pepsi daily to none without seeing any more than about 5 lbs of weight loss. I didn't think I had "made up" for the calorie difference by consuming more of other things, so I wondered why I hadn't lost more (cutting over 800 cal a day should have resulted in about an 80 lb loss in a year). After I was diagnoed and learned more about diabetes, I realised that a lot of that sugar was, in effect, going on through me and being excreted in urine. Cutting Pepsi out of my life was no doubt a good thing, though, as I may have done more damage to my body otherwise.

The reason weight loss occurs with diabetes is that, when the body is unable to utilize glucose for fuel, it starts burning fat and muscle tissue instead. This causes weight loss. It is not, however, a healthy way to lose weight. The byproduce of this process is an acid called ketones, and the combination of high blood sugar plus ketones can produce a dangerous and sometimes fatal condition called diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA for short). This is always a life-threatening condition and requires hospitalization.

As soon as a diabetic discovers ketones in their urine, they need to take action to immediately lower their blood glucose (with extra insulin) and flush the ketones by drinking lots of water. Oftentimes this will be enough to prevent the condition from progressing into DKA.

While Wwonderr is right that sugar is being excreted in the urine, the weight loss is not happening because calories are being excreted, but rather that the body is actually "eating" itself in an effort to find fuel.

The classic symptoms of ketosis are being very thirsty and needing to urinate much more frequently than normal.

Ruth