There was an interesting article in the latest release of Diabetes Daily. It is the closest anyone can get to actually reversing diabetes type 2.
This study also underlines the strong link - which many still prefer to deny - between body weight and type 2. The denial is because it leads to uncomfortable questions like ‘who is to blame’, ‘what could I have done differently’ or ‘is it my fault’.
Those questions are of course entirely irrelevant after the fact and a waste of time and emotional energy. The focus needs to be on here and now and the future. That said it is an undeniable fact that well over 90 percent of newly diagnosed type 2 diabetics are overweight or obese, and that those who engage in a serious weight loss program, for example through a LCHF diet, or regular daily walking, will see their blood sugar readings normalized after a short time, and stay normal unless they put the weight back on…
This is a link to the article:
https://www.diabetesdaily.com/blog/study-suggests-type-2-diabetes-remission-possible-with-very-low-calorie-diet-266903/
Here are some facts about weight:
As I have said before, I consider Roy Taylor to be a bit of an arrogant twit and the Newcastle diet to be misguided and potentially very harmful. The highly respected Prof Richard Feinman (@Feinman1) was the first one to comment on this and he noted that just following a low carb diet was at least as effect as well as easier to do and suggested that Taylor would do better investigating low carb diets. I tend to agree.
And the whole thing about “reversing” diabetes. That just makes my hair catch on fire. That is totally wrong a misuse of the term and harmful. But unfortunately as I mentioned before the good Prof Taylor thinks he knows more than anyone else and refuses to use the accurate term which is remission.
I wish people would stop using the term reversing. This isn’t reversing. It isn’t a cure and it isn’t preventing anything.
It caught my attention this week as well. I do not know enough to comment on the writer. But I I was shocked someone would use the terminology so recklessly. Kind of scary for certain. I agree with Brain on this one for certain.
It’s been said before: association is not necessarily indicative of a causal relationship.
I did this pre-diagnosis: Lost a VERY significant amount of weight and kept it off for an extended period and did daily exercise. I had NOT put ANY of the weight back on and my fasting BG at diagnosis was 309, with an A1c of 11.8 – these test results are undeniable facts.
Reversed what?
I’m sorry, but I know waaay too many folks who were far from obese when Dx with T2. And as has been said—“reversing” it gives me the heebie-jeebies. Control, yes! But you can never go back to the way you used to eat. Your life as you knew it is over. Which is very far from a reversal…And there is so much evidence now that The D is developing first and Causing the weight gain…
This reckless use of misleading language undermines their assertions. Why over-reach? Remission is a big deal in my mind.
this is just too funny!!!
So instead of everyone tying knots in their nickers or braids in their hair out of frustration with a simple word remission, let’s say 'temporary suspension of diabetes type 2 symptoms". That should cover it don’t you think?
Just for the record, I have to admit that my personal experience clouds my view on this issue.
At the time of my type 2 diagnosis in 1998 my Hbaic was 8.6 and I weighed in at 224 lbs. At 6’1 that made me borderline obese with a bmi of 30.
With the help of some lifestyle modifications (no meds) including walking and changes to my diet, by 2002 I had lost 54 lbs and weighed 170 lbs, for a bmi of
22.4.
At that time my hba1c varied between 5.2 and 4.8.
Following a cardiac arrest in 2010 that left me with limited mobility for a year or two, I gained weight back up 200 lbs and my Hba1c went up to 7.5.
How much more does it take to convince someone that their is a correlation between body weight and blood sugar control???
We would certainly agree there is a correlation (sometimes called association) between weight and blood sugar control. But that isn’t causation. I would suggest that it is the other way around. Poor blood sugar control causes excess weight gain and tight blood sugar control causes normalization of weight. This causal explanation better fits the observations (even for the horrible Newcastle diet).
Also - this is what worked FOR YOU. It does not mean that you can then prescribe this to EVERYONE. Bodies differ, and the saying around here is “Your Diabetes May Vary.” That means that what has worked for you may not work for the next person.
LOL—Well—try this on…I quite suddenly gained a lot of weight–35 pounds in 7 weeks–before we caught the fact that I was hypothyroid. I never changed my very low carb diet and maintained my menu of exercise options (dance workout, gardening, walks)…My A1c went from 5.6 to 5.3…
“If you want to treat diabetes ‘by the book’, you need to write a new book for every diabetic.”
@Vancouversailor This article brings up some interesting points. Unfortunately, there are still some medical professionals that ignore the the nutrition and weight loss side of type 2. What I find intriguing is the last question: Would you consider eating 700 calories a day if it meant your diabetes would go into remission?
Eating such a low calorie diet is not realistic for anyone, diabetic or not. If there’s anything the Minnesota Experiment taught us is that starving yourself with make you food obsessed. Enjoying a realistic diet of 1,500-2,000 daily calories is more achievable, but gets far less online clicks.
We also see a lot of concern about the terms “reversing” and “curing” diabetes. There is no cure, miracle or not, for diabetes. However, reversing diabetes can mean controlled with nutrition and exercise to the point medications are no longer needed. Unfortunately, the longer diabetes is left out of control, the more organ and tissue damage will be done. This makes it hard to go back to the standard American high-carb diet.
Best,
Frank
Just a quick review of the thread, Brian I may agree with you about the Newcastle diet, but I do believe that the arrogant twit comment, could hit close to home for you too. ; -)
Let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater because someone doesn’t like a word. I don’t care about a word, I do have reservations of the drink formula and would do a low calorie LCHF if I were to do this.
Taylor doesn’t care if you do the drinks, the 5+2 or anything else, as long as you lose the weight to get rid of the liver and pancreas fat. 1 hour and 10 min into lecture
Newcastle diet aims in 8+ weeks to mimic the rate of ~70% remission, for surgery T2
Diabetes - Newcastle Magnetic Resonance Centre - Newcastle University
Newcastle diet Lecture
http://www.ncl.ac.uk/events/public-lectures/item.php?roy-taylor-diabetes
Tablespoon oil 10g The role of gallbladder emptying in gallstone formation during diet-induced rapid weight loss - PubMed
So let me ask. If blood sugars normalize immediately with the diet, what does that suggest? If blood sugars also immediately normalize with a low carb diet what does that suggest? Since both diets can normalize blood sugars in just as many patients and hence achieve remission does that mean it is weight than enables remission or is some else likely allowing the pancreas to recover? If a low carb diet is both sustainable and safe (as opposed to the Newcastle diet), what does that suggest about a superior approach to remission?
AFAIK
he is doing a trial, it has to be the same for everyone to get the data, if you looked at the presentation or read my post,he doesn’t care what an individual does, as long as you lose the weight
they get normal bloods after a week with very low cal…but…with your normal calories, you need to pass an OGTT with normal BG and near normal in 1st and 2nd phase to be in ‘remission/reversal’ at the end of it or you fail and one of the other 30% that don’t make it.
mind you, you would still have better bloods than before. but I think a lot in both groups will go back to old eating habits, because they will be told to eat lots of’ healthy’ carbs by the dietitians
I looked through the links you sent. I have actually seen the man present in person and have met him.
As far as I can tell, none of his trials have done anything to substantiate his “claim” that diabetes is caused by excess fat around the pancreas and liver. Numerous trials over the years have shown that virtually any diet lead to short term improvements both in blood sugar control and weight and that those blood sugar improvements lead to some long lasting improvement. But those improvements could be due to a number of things, most importantly giving the pancreas a chance to rest and recover. And low carb diets have been shown to be very effective in reducing the same fat buildups (when the liver fat get’s bad it is called NASH). He states a “theory” but doesn’t do the science to prove it.
And most alarming at all, I raise questions about whether you can get the same results using an (at least) equally effective and clearly safer low carb diet that can be sustained forever without requiring patients to pay their doctor so much money.
You aren’t looking hard enough if you don’t know what he is basing the pancreas fat on.
heck I even gave the timestamp on the presentation that specifical states, he doesn’t care how you do it, as long as you lose the weight…
it seems like you just want to argue because you don’t like it.
Can you show me anywhere in his work where he has studied the causal link between liver/pancreas fat and diabetes? I can’t find it. All he has studied is that patients that follow some diet achieve normal glycemia and display reductions in weight and these fat deposits. That doesn’t provide evidence of his theory as normal glycemia (and a low carb diet) can also explain both weight loss and reduction in fat deposits. And his diet is certainly a low calorie diet, but it is by definition a low carb (< 50-75 g/day) or often a very low carb diet (< 30 g /day).