Taking a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1) agonist drug lowers the likelihood of having a stroke, heart attack or dying due to cardiovascular causes by 12%. The drugs give a similar 12% reduction in overall mortality. They do not increase the risk of heart failure, very low blood sugar levels or pancreatic disease. Diabetes causes one …

In My Signals, health and social care staff and service users tell us what research is important to them and why they feel others need to know about it. In this collection, we asked seven members of the public to tell us which Signals have interested them most and explain why they feel the findings …

People who lose at least 10% of their body weight in the first year after being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes increase their chances of being in remission after five years, compared with those whose weight remains stable. Losing this achievable amount of weight over the next four years also makes remission more likely. In …

Increasing the intake of polyunsaturated fats in the diet with supplements of omega-3 fatty acids, for example, is unlikely to affect people’s risk of developing type 2 diabetes. However, this review only looked at the effect of supplements on diabetes, not wider health. This large systematic review included 83 long-term trials comparing higher and lower …

People with type 2 diabetes using smartphone apps or message services feel more confident about their ability to manage their condition, are more likely to engage in self-care activities and have a better quality of life. Smartphone self-management technologies can be split into two main types: applications where users can record data and view information, …

There appears to be no benefit from treating adults with subclinical hypothyroidism. Treatment has no effect on quality of life or symptoms compared with placebo or no treatment. Thyroid function tests are commonly performed in general practice for patients who present with a range of symptoms, including fatigue or tiredness. When subclinical hypothyroidism is detected, …

Older adults with normal thyroid function or subclinical thyroid dysfunction show notable long-term stability of their thyroid hormone levels. This suggests that it is safe for GPs not to routinely retest older adults unless they have risk factors or develop clinical symptoms of overt thyroid dysfunction. Over five years, about 0.2% older adults with normal …

Diet and exercise are effective ways of preventing the development of diabetes during pregnancy, known as gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes is becoming more common and is associated with poorer outcomes for mother and baby. Diet, physical activity and weight are modifiable risk factors, but trials published to date have shown inconsistent results. This systematic review …

Omega-3 fatty acid supplements make no difference to cardiovascular outcomes in people with diabetes but without established cardiovascular disease. Serious vascular events like heart attack, stroke or deaths from these occurred in about 10% of people regardless of whether they took daily omega-3 or placebo capsules for seven years. The ASCEND study is a large UK …

Daily aspirin reduced the risk of serious vascular events among people with diabetes, while increasing the risk of major bleeding to a similar extent. Aspirin prevented one person in every 100 from having a heart attack or stroke over seven years, but an additional person per 100 experienced a major bleed. The ASCEND study is …