Who knew that all it took was removing the vagus nerve to prevent or reverse the development of insulin resistance. Wait -- what the hell is the vagus nerve? Turns out that it is a rather important nerve communicates with with just about everything in your body. It's truly no wonder that the terms 'vagus' itself is derived from the Latin word meaning "wanderer." And, thanks to researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, it has been found to play a very important role in preventing both diabetes and hypertension.

The scientists published their findings in the February issue of the journal Cell Metabolism, first pointing to a nuclear receptor they had previously highlighted called PPAR-Alpha (Ppara). This receptor had been shown to be necessary for the induction of both hypertension and diabetes when lab mice were treated with steroids. Considering that steroids are commonly prescribed for people who ave asthma, arthritis, and organ transplants, it has been suggested that this treatment has lead to insulin resistance and, in some cases, result in diabetes.

However, in the research team's most recent study, they found that both the Ppara and the vagus nerve play a significant role in the development of diabetes and hypertension. It appears as though by removing the vagus nerve, the risk of developing these disorders in response to steroid treatment, even if they have Ppara.

While the research on the interruption of nerve signals to the liver has only been performed on mice thus far, scientists are hopeful that their results will also hold true for humans.