If you have type 2 diabetes, should you focus on lifestyle changes or resort to surgery? A new study indicates that while lifestyle changes are always a good idea, it’s actually gastric surgery that offers the best results for diabetes patients.

Studies in the past have found that surgery is highly beneficial for those struggling with type 2 diabetes, but there was still a big question over whether surgeries are better for the patients than lifestyle changes, according to a Reuters report.

The study, published in JAMA Surgery, examined 61 people between the ages of 25 and 55 who were suffering from type 2 diabetes, and half of them were class 1 obesity — the lowest level — and teh rest were above that.

Doctors typically recommend weight loss surgery for those who have a body mass index of 40 or more, although they sometimes recommend it for patients with a lower BMI if they have other health conditions. However, those with class 1 or 2 obesity are in the 30 to 39 BMI range, and therefore are typically not recommended to get surgery.

About 9 percent of the U.S. population has diabetes, and 30 percent are undiagnosed. Type 2 is hte most common form and is typically linked to obesity.

The participants in the study had been assigned to receive one of three treatments: they could lose weight with diet and exercise over the course of a year, or they could have a weight-loss surgery and could choose between two types of surgery.

After three years, scientists found that 40 percent of the patients who had received the first type of surgery and 29 percent of those who had received the second type had partial remission in type 2 diabetes. However, no one in the lifestyle intervention group succeeding in causing their diabetes to go into remission.

A larger study will be needed to confirm the results, but they provide some very promising leads for scientists.