Effect of insulin on serum lipids in relation to nutritional status in diabetics

Abstract

Serum levels of cholesterol, triglyceride, free fatty acid (FFA) and high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol were studied in 10 undernourished and 10 better nourished diabetic patients at different periods of insulin treatment and in non-diabetic controls. Serum concentrations of cholesterol, triglyceride and FFA were significantly higher in untreated diabetic patients than in control but the elevated lipid levels gradually shifted towards normal on insulin treatment. The HDL cholesterol, on the other hand, was significantly lower in untreated diabetic subjects than those in controls and the HDL cholesterol also gradually modified on insulin therapy. However, the improvement of all the lipid parameters on insulin treatment was somewhat delayed in undernourished compared to those of better nourished diabetics. These results, therefore, suggest that malnutrition interferes with the serum lipid improvement in diabetics on insulin treatment and may make them more prone to develop vascular complications.