With an estimated 422 million affected patients worldwide in 2016, type 2 diabetes (T2D) has reached pandemic proportions and represents a major unmet medical need. T2D is a polygenic disease with a chronic, low-grade inflammatory component. Second-generation transient receptor potential vanilloid-1 (TRPV1) antagonists are potent anti-inflammatory agents with proven clinical safety. In rodent models of T2D, TRPV1 blockade was shown to halt disease progression and improve glucose metabolism. Thus, we propose that TRPV1 antagonists merit further study as novel therapeutic approaches to potentially treat T2D and its comorbidities.