The association between patterns of weight change, diabetes status and glycaemia among adults with overweight and obesity

Aims To investigate the associations between weight change patterns and 5-year incident non-diabetic hyperglycaemia (NDH), and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) levels among individuals who had overweight or obesity. Methods This longitudinal cohort study (N = 435) pooled data from a weight management trial. Participants were adults with a BMI of ≥28 kg/m2. They were categorised as "no weight loss", "maintainers", and "regainers" based on their weight at 3 months and 12 months after baseline. Multivariable logistic regression models and linear regressions were conducted to examine the associations. Results Between 1-year and 5-year follow-ups, 77 participants developed NDH. We found no statistically significant association between weight change patterns and incident NDH at 5 years. Among weight loss maintainers, mean HbA1c was −0.15 % (95 % confidence intervals (CI): −0.22, −0.10) lower after 1 year and −0.15 % (95 % CI: −0.23, −0.06) lower after 5 years compared to the no weight loss group. There was no difference between weight loss regainers and no weight loss group in HbA1c levels. Conclusions Compared to those who did not lose weight, participants who maintained their weight loss had lower HbA1c levels after 1 year and 5 years, which highlights the importance of providing long-term support to prevent weight regain.