Cortisol and Type 2 Diabetes: What Patients Need to Know

Expert John Buse, M.D., Ph.D., unpacks how hidden cortisol excess acts as a silent driver of treatment-resistant metabolic disease. The series reveals that roughly 25% of individuals with difficult-to-control type 2 diabetes unknowingly suffer from autonomous cortisol hypersecretion, a condition where the adrenal gland overproduces hormones that actively sabotage blood sugar and spike cardiovascular risk. Buse guides patients through the essential diagnostic steps and emerging cortisol-directed therapies, reframing a stubborn A1C not as a personal failure, but as a complex hormonal puzzle to be solved alongside a healthcare team.