Research Summary

Analyzed using Evidence Intelligence™

Exenatide improves weight loss compared to glargine in type 2 diabetes

Last updated September 12, 2026

Key finding

Weight decreased significantly with exenatide.

This study compared the effects of exenatide and insulin glargine on body composition in overweight and obese patients with type 2 diabetes. Exenatide significantly reduced body weight and fat mass, while glargine increased these measures.

Quick read

Study at a glance

The essential study design details in one scan.

EvidenceScore™

Moderate

Study type

RCTs

Follow-up

Long-Term (1–5 y)

Risk of bias

Some Concerns

Save research, organize studies, and quickly find important evidence again.

Plain-language summary

What this paper says

A plain-language read of the study’s main message and where it applies.

Study focus

Clinical relevance

These findings are clinically significant as they suggest that exenatide may be a preferable treatment option for overweight and obese patients with type 2 diabetes, particularly for those concerned about weight gain associated with insulin therapy. Effective weight management is crucial in diabetes care, as it can improve overall health outcomes and reduce the risk of complications.

Keep in mind

Limited to overweight and obese patients with type 2 diabetes. Results may not be generalizable to other populations. Short duration of follow-up may not capture long-term effects.

Published in

Journal Reference

Publication details and source links for this paper.

Ting-Ting Y, Yan B, Ping L, et al. Comparative effects of exenatide and insulin glargine on body composition in overweight and obese patients with type 2 diabetes: a randomized controlled trial. Nutrition & Metabolism. 2018;15:67. doi:10.1186/s12986-018-0295-6

View DOI View on PubMed View on PMC

Main Effects

Exenatide reduced body weight by 4.5 kg (p = 0.001).

Exenatide decreased BMI by 1.2 kg/m² (p = 0.001).

Exenatide lowered body fat mass by 2.1 kg (p = 0.001).

Insulin glargine increased body weight by 4.5 kg (p = 0.001).

Evidence network

How this study fits

Understand where this research contributes within the broader evidence network.

Evidence Context

This study contributes evidence to Exenatide, Glargine U100 and BMI, Beta-cell function, Body fat mass, and 2 more.

This study contributes evidence to

Intervention

Exenatide

Outcome

BMI

Evidence topic

Weight Loss

Primary intervention

Exenatide

Primary outcomes

BMI
Beta-cell function
Body fat mass

Evidence topics

Weight Loss Body Composition Beta-Cell Function GLP-1 Receptor Agonists

Primary intervention

Exenatide

Primary outcomes

BMI Beta-cell function Body fat mass

Evidence relationships

Intervention and outcome relationships this study adds to the evidence network.

Evidence pairs

Relationships

Evidence topics

contributes_evidence

Editorial context

Why this study matters

See why this paper is useful beyond its individual results.

Evidence network role

This section describes how the study fits into the current evidence network. It does not determine whether an intervention works on its own.

Moderate contributionModerate confidenceNetwork score: 68

Why it is useful

Contributes to 8 evidence relationships
Includes primary outcome data
Linked to 4 direct semantic evidence topics

Topic contributions

Evidence topic

Contributes evidence

Evidence topic

Contributes evidence

Evidence topic

Contributes evidence

Evidence topic

Contributes evidence

Add related evidence to your Evidence Tracker

Save studies and evidence pages, organize your personal Evidence Tracker, and keep the research you care about in one place.

Primary evidence

Evidence relationship

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists and Body Weight

Related evidence

Evidence relationship

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists and Body Mass Index

Save evidence

Evidence relationship

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists and Body Composition

Save evidence

Core evidence

Study findings

The primary outcomes reported in this study.

Beta-cell function

Exenatide → Beta-cell function

Evidence Intelligence™

EvidenceScore™: Emerging; Score 59 · Based on 1 study
ImpactScore™: 50; Neutral
ConsistencyScore™: unclear; Not enough independent studies

Based on 1 study

Add to Evidence Tracker

BMI

Exenatide → BMI

Evidence Intelligence™

EvidenceScore™: Moderate; Score 69 · Based on 2 studies
ImpactScore™: 100; Very Positive
ConsistencyScore™: 100; consistent

Based on 2 studies

Add to Evidence Tracker

Body fat mass

Exenatide → Body fat mass

Evidence Intelligence™

EvidenceScore™: Emerging; Score 59 · Based on 1 study
ImpactScore™: 100; Very Positive
ConsistencyScore™: unclear; Not enough independent studies

Based on 1 study

Add to Evidence Tracker

Body weight

Exenatide → Body weight

Evidence Intelligence™

EvidenceScore™: Strong; Score 79 · Based on 3 studies
ImpactScore™: 83; Positive
ConsistencyScore™: 100; consistent

Based on 3 studies

Add to Evidence Tracker

Insulin resistance

Exenatide → Insulin resistance

Evidence Intelligence™

EvidenceScore™: Emerging; Score 59 · Based on 1 study
ImpactScore™: 50; Neutral
ConsistencyScore™: unclear; Not enough independent studies

Based on 1 study

Add to Evidence Tracker

BMI

Glargine U100 → BMI

Evidence Intelligence™

EvidenceScore™: Emerging; Score 59 · Based on 1 study
ImpactScore™: 25; Negative
ConsistencyScore™: unclear; Not enough independent studies

Based on 1 study

Add to Evidence Tracker

Body fat mass

Glargine U100 → Body fat mass

Evidence Intelligence™

EvidenceScore™: Emerging; Score 59 · Based on 1 study
ImpactScore™: 25; Negative
ConsistencyScore™: unclear; Not enough independent studies

Based on 1 study

Add to Evidence Tracker

Body weight

Glargine U100 → Body weight

Evidence Intelligence™

EvidenceScore™: Emerging; Score 59 · Based on 1 study
ImpactScore™: 25; Negative
ConsistencyScore™: unclear; Not enough independent studies

Based on 1 study

Add to Evidence Tracker

Evidence Library

Build your evidence library

Save research, organize studies, and quickly find important evidence again.

Evidence Suggest

Exenatide significantly decreased body fat mass by 2.1 kg.
Insulin glargine led to a weight increase of 4.5 kg.
Both treatments had similar effects on glycemic control.

Who this applies to

Overweight and obese adults with type 2 diabetes.
Patients looking for effective weight management options.

Keep in Mind

The study did not assess long-term outcomes beyond the trial duration.
Differences in weight change may not translate to differences in health outcomes.
Further research is needed to confirm findings in diverse populations.

Between the Lines

Limited to overweight and obese patients with type 2 diabetes.
Results may not be generalizable to other populations.
Short duration of follow-up may not capture long-term effects.

Evidence Library

Build your evidence library

Save research, organize studies, and quickly find important evidence again.

Connected Evidence

Explore related studies, evidence collections, and research questions.

Relationships organized using the Dediabetes Evidence Intelligence™ framework.

This study contributes to evidence on GLP-1 Receptor Agonists and Body Weight, GLP-1 Receptor Agonists and Body Mass Index.

Related evidence relationships

Explore in Evidence Explorer

This study contributes to the evidence on the following intervention-outcome relationships.

Medications

Detailed evidence

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists → Body Weight

Medications

Evidence Intelligence™

EvidenceScore™: Strong; Score 79 · Based on 3 studies
ImpactScore™: 83; Positive
ConsistencyScore™: 100; consistent

Based on 3 studies

View evidence

Medications

Detailed evidence

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists → Body Mass Index

Medications

Evidence Intelligence™

EvidenceScore™: Moderate; Score 69 · Based on 2 studies
ImpactScore™: 100; Very Positive
ConsistencyScore™: 100; consistent

Based on 2 studies

View evidence

Included in these evidence collections

Curated evidence collections and hubs this study is part of.

Body Weight Evidence Hub

All studies measuring Body Weight

3 studies

outcome_hub

Measures Body Weight as a key outcome.

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists Evidence Hub

All studies on GLP-1 Receptor Agonists

3 studies

intervention_hub

Contributes to GLP-1 Receptor Agonists evidence base.

Body Mass Index Evidence Hub

All studies measuring Body Mass Index

2 studies

outcome_hub

Measures Body Mass Index as a key outcome.

Explore more in Evidence Explorer

Jump to pre-filtered views in Evidence Explorer.

All studies on Exenatide and Body weight

Intervention: ExenatideOutcome: Body weight

3 results

All studies on Exenatide and BMI

Intervention: ExenatideOutcome: BMI

2 results

All studies on Exenatide

Intervention: Exenatide

3 results

All studies measuring Body weight

Outcome: Body weight

3 results

All studies measuring BMI

Outcome: BMI

2 results

Questions answered by this study

Generated from the study's connected evidence using Evidence Intelligence™.

Do GLP-1 Receptor Agonists affect body weight?

Strong Evidence

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists may affect body weight.

ConsistencyScore™: Results are consistent across studies.

Ranked evidence signals

1
Body weight
EvidenceScore™ Strong | EvidenceScore™ 79.0 | moderate positive | ConsistencyScore™ Consistent | 1 study

Why this answer: This answer is based on 43 supporting studies with consistent results and a positive effect signal.

View Full Evidence

Do GLP-1 Receptor Agonists affect body mass index?

Strong Evidence

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists may affect body mass index.

ConsistencyScore™: Results are consistent across studies.

Ranked evidence signals

1
BMI
EvidenceScore™ Moderate | EvidenceScore™ 69.0 | strong positive | ConsistencyScore™ Consistent | 1 study

Why this answer: This answer is based on 20 supporting studies with consistent results and a positive effect signal.

View Full Evidence

Do GLP-1 Receptor Agonists improve body composition?

Strong Evidence

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists may improve body composition.

ConsistencyScore™: Results are consistent across studies.

Ranked evidence signals

1
Body fat mass
EvidenceScore™ Emerging | EvidenceScore™ 59.0 | strong positive | ConsistencyScore™ Unclear | 1 study

Why this answer: This answer is based on 12 supporting studies with consistent results and a positive effect signal.

View Full Evidence

Do GLP-1 Receptor Agonists improve insulin resistance?

Strong Evidence

GLP-1 Receptor Agonists appear to improve insulin resistance.

ConsistencyScore™: Results are generally consistent across studies.

Ranked evidence signals

1
Insulin resistance
EvidenceScore™ Emerging | EvidenceScore™ 59.0 | neutral | ConsistencyScore™ Unclear | 1 study

Why this answer: This answer is based on 10 supporting studies with generally consistent results and a positive effect signal.

View Full Evidence

Learn how Evidence Intelligence™ works

Next steps

Continue your research

Choose a next path through related evidence topics, Evidence Explorer views, and research summaries.

Evidence topics

Follow the topics this study contributes to.

Weight Loss Evidence Hub Body Composition Evidence Hub Beta-Cell Function Evidence Hub GLP-1 Receptor Agonists Evidence Hub

Explore in Evidence Explorer

Open broader Evidence Explorer views for this relationship.

All studies on Exenatide and Body weight All studies on Exenatide and BMI All studies on Exenatide and Beta-cell function All studies on Exenatide and Body fat mass

Related research

Read related research summaries.

Exenatide does not affect renal function in type 2 diabetes Exenatide improves glycemic control and reduces weight in T2DM patients Baseline features predict exenatide efficacy in type 2 diabetes Exenatide improves glucose control in type 2 diabetes Pharmacotherapy may achieve diabetes remission

No ads. No tracking.

Focused on evidence, not advertising.

Secure & private

Your data is always protected.

Always up to date

New studies added every day.