Angiotensin II receptor blockade and insulin sensitivity in overweight and obese adults with elevated blood pressure

We tested the hypothesis that olmesartan, an angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB) devoid of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ agonist activity, would improve whole-body insulin sensitivity in overweight and obese individuals with elevated blood pressure (BP). Sixteen individuals (8 women, 8 men; age=49.5 ± 2.9 years; body mass index=33.0 ± 1.7 kg/m²) were randomly assigned in a crossover manner to control and ARB interventions. Insulin sensitivity was determined from intravenous glucose tolerances tests before and after each 8-week intervention. BP, body weight, body fat, lipid and lipoprotein concentrations, and insulin sensitivity were similar at baseline for both treatments (all p > 0.05). Diastolic BP and triglyceride concentrations were higher (p = 0.007 and 0.042 respectively) at baseline for the ARB compared with the control intervention. Systolic (−11.7 mmHg; p = 0.008) and diastolic (−12.1 mmHg; p = 0.0001) BP decreased, however insulin sensitivity did not change (p > 0.05) following ARB treatment. Furthermore, there were no significant correlates of changes in insulin sensitivity following the ARB intervention. In summary, our findings indicate that short-term ARB treatment did not affect whole-body insulin sensitivity in overweight or obese individuals with elevated BP. Future studies are needed to clarify the effect of individual ARBs on insulin sensitivity in obesity.