Heat therapy for diabetes: an early idea, not a treatment
A review proposes that heat exposure might help restore a stress-protein balance in type 2 diabetes. It’s a hypothesis from early research, not an established treatment.
The short version
This 2015 review proposes that people with type 2 diabetes may have an imbalance in a stress protein called HSP70, and that heat exposure might help restore it. The authors point to a small number of studies reporting improvements in blood sugar measures, including roughly a one-point drop in HbA1c, alongside heat therapy. But this is an opinion-style review built around a proposed mechanism, not a systematic look at the evidence, and the human studies behind it are few and small. It is not a diabetes treatment, and it should never replace medical care.
Keep in mind
This is an opinion-style review proposing a mechanism, not a systematic look at the evidence. The underlying human studies are few and small, and heat exposure is not a treatment for diabetes.
What they found
The review’s central idea is that people with type 2 diabetes tend to have lower heat shock protein 70 inside their cells and more of it in their blood, a pattern linked to insulin resistance, and that heat exposure may help shift this balance back.
It points to a small number of studies reporting improvements in insulin sensitivity, fasting glucose and HbA1c (described as roughly a one-point drop) alongside heat therapy.
The authors describe this as a promising, low-cost idea worth testing further, using cautious, hedged language throughout rather than presenting it as settled.
What this means for your practice
This is an interesting research direction, not medical advice. Heat exposure has not been shown to be an effective treatment for type 2 diabetes.
Diabetes management should stay with your doctor. Nothing here supports using sauna or heat sessions in place of prescribed treatment or monitoring.
Methods and limitations
What the researchers did
The authors reviewed research on heat shock proteins, molecules that help cells handle stress, and how their balance differs in people with type 2 diabetes, then proposed a theory for why heat exposure might help.
This is an expert review built around a hypothesis, called the “chaperone balance” idea, rather than a systematic review that grades all the available evidence by a fixed method.
The human evidence it cites comes from a small number of separate clinical studies using different heat-therapy protocols, not one large trial.
How much can this tell us?
A mechanism-focused expert review can generate a good hypothesis, but it is not the same as a systematic review or a large clinical trial. It reflects the authors’ reading of a mix of small studies with different protocols.
A change in a blood marker like HbA1c in small studies is not the same as a demonstrated treatment effect at the population level.
The “chaperone balance” idea is a proposed explanation for an association, not a mechanism the cited human studies directly tested and established.
What makes it useful
- Proposes a clear, testable biological mechanism
- Connects cell biology to a clinically meaningful marker (HbA1c)
- Written by researchers active in the heat shock protein field
What limits it
- An expert opinion review, not a systematic review or a clinical trial
- The human data behind it comes from a small number of small studies with different protocols
- It is a hypothesis about mechanism, not a demonstrated treatment
- Not a substitute for medical care in diabetes
Where this study fits
Where this study fits
We score claims, not single studies. This one is part of the evidence for:
Heat helps control blood sugar. Not supported
Low certaintyNo effect foundBody signals
Read the original
Krause M, Ludwig MS, Heck TG, Takahashi HK. Heat shock proteins and heat therapy for type 2 diabetes: pros and cons. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2015;18(4):374-380.
DOI 10.1097/MCO.0000000000000183 · PubMed 26049635