Julia Otten

I am an endocrinologist and Senior Lecturer, as well as a consultant physician at the Department of Medicine. My research primarily focuses on lifestyle-based treatment of type 2 diabetes, particularly the effects of diet and physical activity, and on identifying early markers of prediabetes and diabetes. I also investigate how glucose metabolism, insulin sensitivity, insulin clearance, and beta-cell function influence lung function and subclinical atherosclerosis in individuals without diabetes.

Furthermore, I examine how various plasma proteins can predict the future development of prediabetes and diabetes, and how the liver–alpha cell axis is affected in overweight and type 2 diabetes, including whether impaired sensitivity in this axis can be restored through weight loss. I conduct intervention studies using dietary approaches such as Paleolithic diets and total diet replacement, and I study the potential for achieving diabetes remission with digital health–based follow-up compared with traditional in-person visits.

In addition, I analyze the physiological changes that occur when individuals with type 2 diabetes lose weight and achieve remission, including effects on insulin sensitivity, beta-cell function, blood pressure, lung function, the liver–alpha cell axis, and adipose tissue. I also carry out qualitative studies exploring participants’ experiences of weight loss, diabetes remission, and different modes of follow-up.