Insulin levels in healthy versus obese cats

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I've updated the subject line and moved the post to Feline Health, as it's an article of general interest. This is a study comparing the connection between feline body condition/body fat and insulin resistance. They also comment that there may be a higher percent of diabetic cats with arthritis.
 
I had a blood draw done on both my cats today, the formerly obese one and the normal weight one, to test for fasting insulin and glucose levels. We should have results back in a week. I hope this gives me some input whether my normal weight cat is developing insulin resistance and if we have reversed insulin resistance in my overweight cat. The only vet school that I could find that does the test is Michigan State. I wish this test was standard for the prevention of feline diabetes. That way cats could be diagnosed when they first start gaining weight, signaling insulin resistance.
It seems to be standard for diagnosing insulin resistance in horses and in people.
 
From the MSU test database for Serum Insulin and Glucose, fasting test, test # 20008:

PURPOSE:
1. This test is used for a diagnosis of insulinoma in dogs, cats, and ferrets. Collect sample when animal is hypoglycemic.
2. Also used to document insulin resistance, especially in horses suspected of pituitary adenoma. Fasting is not necessary in horses. (Avoid feeding grain for at least 4 hrs. prior to sample collection). It is not necessary to withhold hay.
3. Indicator of metabolic syndrome in horses.

Please post when you get the results. It'll be interesting to hear.
 
Will be interesting to see.

I will note that Mr Kitty had/has both IAA and acromegaly, yet has never been overweight. Actually had the opposite problem, weight loss, until he was better regulated.

He does have mild arthritis, so far nothing we actually have to treat.
 
I am not very familiar with acromegaly. What is the connection to diabetes if any? I thought it was a pituitary condition.
 
Birgit said:
I am not very familiar with acromegaly. What is the connection to diabetes if any? I thought it was a pituitary condition.
Click to expand...
You might want to take a look at the “Stickies” (yellow starred posts) on the Acromegaly/IAA/Cushings Cats forum. There’s some good info there.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
From the MSU test database for Serum Insulin and Glucose, fasting test, test # 20008:

PURPOSE:
1. This test is used for a diagnosis of insulinoma in dogs, cats, and ferrets. Collect sample when animal is hypoglycemic.
2. Also used to document insulin resistance, especially in horses suspected of pituitary adenoma. Fasting is not necessary in horses. (Avoid feeding grain for at least 4 hrs. prior to sample collection). It is not necessary to withhold hay.
3. Indicator of metabolic syndrome in horses.

Please post when you get the results. It'll be interesting to hear.
Click to expand...

Here are the results from my cats' fasting insulin and glucose tests done at Michigan State.
Hazel is the cat that was overweight by about 1.5 lbs. (now normal weight at 10 lbs.). River is the one that was a little underweight (now normal at 9 lbs.)
Both have now been on a very low-carb (below 5%) diet for several months.
Hazel - fasting glucose 148 mg/dL reference range is 78-143
- fasting insulin is 7.1uIU/ml reference range is 10.0-81.3

River - fasting glucose 118 mg-dL reference range is 78-143
- fasting insulin is 4.1 uIU/ml reference range is 10.0-81.3

According to my vet the slightly higher glucose levels (above 100) are easily explained through the rise of cortisol in response to being at the vet office and having a blood draw done.

These results confirm to me that insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia is reversible through diet alone.
My hypothesis, based on these results and the study linked above is that by testing for fasting insulin and glucose levels, diabetes in cats can be caught early before insulin resistance/hyperinsulinemia has progressed to where blood glucose levels are out of control and the beta cells of the pancreas can no longer keep up with the demand for insulin.
If anyone else has cats' tested for fasting insulin and glucose I would be very interested what results you get.
I do not expect a recurrence of high insulin or glucose levels unless medication, stress or high carb foods are for some reason unavoidable.
The question in my mind is the reference range given for insulin. If it is based on cats eating a high-carb kibble-type diet then it would make sense that my cats' insulin level is below this. Carbs require far more insulin then protein, fat requires none.
I also wonder if the top end of the insulin reference, 81.3, is already far above optimal and would rarely occur in a cat that has always been on a very low-carb diet.
 
Interesting. Note that not all cats are diabetics for the same reason, or would have the diabetes reversible through diet. My girl also had acromegaly and IAA (insulin auto antibodies) like Mr. Kitty. Acromegaly is caused by a benign pituitary tumour that causes excess growth hormone to be output. It is thought about 1 in 4 diabetic cats are diabetic because they have acromegaly. Neko was on a low carb raw diet, but that would have no impact on reversing her diabetes. Other cats become diabetic due to damage in the pancreas or steroids. Insulin resistance is also caused by hyperthyroidism, cardiac disease, kidney disease, to name a few. However, there probably are some percentage of cats, possible hereditary? for home diet change would make a big difference.
 
Yes, I am still learning about some of the reasons for diabetes in cats. I knew that kidney disease can be the result of diabetes, same for cardiac disease but did not know that the opposite can also happen. I will take a look around what I find as far as stats in how many cases feline diabetes is caused by things other than diet. I suspect sometimes all we can know is correlation, not causation. As far as steroids, I am wondering if they can push a cat over the edge to diabetes if they are already insulin resistant/hyperinsulinemic but I am just speculating. It's just interesting that some cats never have problems after taking steroids while others do.
When you talk about IAA is that somewhat similar to type 1 in people?
 
The interesting thing for me is that the fasting insulin test is cheap and reliable, requiring only a blood draw. Any vet can do it and send to the Michigan lab. So if anyone has cats that are getting overweight, even a little, it is worth it in my opinion to do this test and find insulin resistance/hyperinsulinemia in the early stages long before fasting blood glucose levels ever go up. At this stage returning to normal is simple and easy, lower carb levels. Weight loss becomes a nice and easy side effect that is a result of lower insulin levels.
Here is the link to their test catalog and fee schedule. I hope it helps many cats to never have to get full-blown diabetes. I sincerely hope that this test will be much more widely available in the near future, offered at least at all veterinary teaching hospital labs.
https://cvm.msu.edu/vdl/tests-fees
 
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