Many years ago a doctor discovered that 90+% of alcoholics drank either gin tonics, vodka tonics, or whiskey tonics and then spent years trying to figure out what it was about quinine that caused alcoholism. It has since been proven that quinine does not cause alcoholism. A high percentage of people but not all suffering from type II diabetes have a history of being fat before developing the diabetes so clearly being fat causes type II diabetes. I DON'T THINK SO. I find it more likely that both type II diabetes and obesity have a common cause giving a high correlation between being fat and getting type II diabetes.

@Slowburn
I agree with this thesis. I've experienced myself that fat accumulates in the wrong places (hips, on spine, etc) if I don't exercise and hardly move at all and that I feel miserable in this state. I don't believe that this fat is mainly a cause but rather a symptom of a metabolic problem. It has already been shown that being fat is not such a big risk factor for those who exercise regularly.
I think that there's basically one thing that the evolutionary process was never able to anticipate: the under use of certain biological mechanisms such as the immune system, cardiovascular system, mitochondria, etc.

In the USA the DOT and FAA have health issues with commercial drivers and pilots the metabolic issue has been a real problems sedentary daily activity doesn't help. This new drug really sounds great. I was in the RX business a long time and this new drug if it works should have a profound impact on the RX business. Hopefully it will because the RX business has ruined countless lives of people with metabolic issue related diseases . In LTC SNF and RCF the prisons of health care are opportunitys to stop health care industry abuse. It was so disgusting to see the people have no quality of life because they are immobilized to prevent liability from falling and the meds contributed to more attrition. Health care maintenance with this new drug can possibly solve the obesity problem. The crap we eat that has high fructose corn syrup ingredient I believe is the major cause of obesity ought to be banned from commercial use by the FDA.

I'm curious if this relates at all to the success from gastric bypass surgery that 'cured' diabetes the following day. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/04/17/60minutes/main4023451.shtml

I was diagnosed as T2 at age 62 and am not obese. I take medication and exercise but the effect of the meds is reducing. I hope this new treatment becomes available before I have to inject insulin/

Dr Slowburn is correct. Obesity and DB2 are symptoms. The cause is... eating too much junk? D'uh!

@kwarks: "the evolutionary process was never able to anticipate"
Evolution doesn't anticipate.
"I don't believe that this fat is mainly a cause but rather a symptom of a metabolic problem. It has already been shown that being fat is not such a big risk factor for those who exercise regularly."
The metabolic problem being eating too much of the wrong things. People who exercise regularly tend not to be fat, not least because exercising regularly tends to make you less fat. Say, if you threw in a little dietary moderation and selectivity, you could be onto something...

You can always tell those that never suffered from being fat they always think that overeating/under exercising is the cause and not a symptom.

I agree that those who have never been fat think it is simply over eating, and when they gain weight find to their surprise that losing it is quite difficult. In fact 90% of people who lose, gain the weight back in two years, and they are quite motivated to be thin; it took a lot of time and effort to lose. It is a symptom not a cause, I quite agree. Currently I have lost 50 pounds and as long as I eat nothing that is above very low glycemic than I am not in the diabetic range. But not being able to process sugar is a metabolic problem and it is also a metabolic problem that causes the weight gain. I personally have not found that reducing the blood sugar levels has made it more possible for me to handle sugars though it may keep me alive, and has made it possible for me to drop all medications.

Is it based on herbal components of Ayurveda?