GI Windows Medical, a clinical-stage, privately-held medical device company, has raised US$16.4 million Series A-1 financing. The financing attracted Johnson & Johnson Innovation along with Sonder Capital, GT Healthcare, JC Investco and one additional strategic investor. In addition to the institutional financing, GI Windows also received investments from existing shareholders as well as new investors, the Kennedy Trust and Coleman Trust.

Young adults who have experienced weight stigma have more distress and maladaptive eating behaviours during the pandemic, regardless of their body size. Research from the UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity and the University of Minnesota shows that young adults who experienced weight stigma before the pandemic have higher levels of depressive symptoms, stress, eating as a coping strategy, and are more likely to binge-eat during COVID-19, compared to those who have not experienced weight stigma.

ReShape Lifesciences has announced preclinical research demonstrating the its investigational Diabetes Bloc-Stim Neuromodulation (DBSN) proprietary device for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) was well-tolerated and met the study endpoints. The study was conducted as a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Small Business Innovation Research Phase I grant that was previously awarded in August 2019.

A pooled analysis of large-scale registry studies by UK researchers suggests that bariatric surgery is associated with reduced long-term all-cause mortality and incidence of obesity-related diseases (new-onset diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and heart disease etc) in patients with obesity for the whole operated population. The outcomes highlight that broader (increased) access to bariatric surgery for people with obesity may reduce the long-term sequelae of this disease and provide population-level benefits.

Young adults with underlying conditions such as morbid obesity, diabetes and hypertension are at the highest risk of being placed on a ventilator or dying from COVID-19, according to a study of 3,000 hospitalized patients aged 18 to 34. It confirmed first and foremost that black and Hispanic people have been the worst affected by the pandemic: they accounted for 57 percent of all young adults who were hospitalized and 49 percent of those who died or needed ventilation, representing about a third of all young people.

The number of people with pre-diabetes who go on to develop type 2 diabetes has been reducing over the past two decades, according to a study led by University of Manchester epidemiologists. However, the changes, according to lead author, Dr Rathi Ravindrarajah, are likely to be attributed to changes in the definition of pre-diabetes and recording practices, as well as preventative work by the NHS., such as the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme.

Probiotics may help children and adolescents with obesity lose weight when taken alongside a calorie-controlled diet, according to a study presented at e-ECE (European Society of Endocrinology) 2020.

Researchers led by Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, London, UK, are looking to recruit participants to enrol in the Bariatric surgery vs. Medical care for obesity and polycystic ovarian syndrome related infertility (BAMBINI) randomised clinical trial. The study will examine the effects of bariatric surgery vs. lifestyle intervention in premenopausal women over the age of 18 with a diagnosis of polycystic ovarian syndrome (POCS) with a body mass index ≥35kg/m2 and less than eight menstrual periods a year.

People with obesity who intentionally (not because of illness) lost an average (median) 13% of their initial body weight reduced their relative risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 42%-44%, sleep apnoea by 22%-27%, high blood pressure by 18%-25%, and dyslipidaemia by 20-22%, according to a study of over 550,000 adults in primary care in the UK. The study authors believe it is the first of its kind to quantify the benefits of intentional weight loss on the risk of obesity-related conditions in real-world clinical practice.

People with obesity who gain weight have a tendency to perceive their own body size as smaller than it actually is compared to those who maintain a stable weight, according to research following more than 2,000 people with obesity from the Swedish Obese Subjects (SOS) study over ten years.