Is Type 2 reversible??

[karloc]

The NHS wesite says
"It's a lifelong condition that can affect your everyday life."

My kids at school learnt (One couple of years ago, other one last week) that
"Type 2 Diabetes is a reversible condition"

I believe that it is reversible and that is what I am working towards, what does every body else believe ??

 

[Ljc]

Their are some small signs that T2 possibly may be reversible if caught in the early stages , generally though it is a lifelong condition. Some people are able to put it into remission, in fact quite a few on here have managed to do this .

Sadly their are a lot of myths and even conmen out there

 

[Ljc]

We would all be ecstatic if one day in the future you came here to tell us you were in remission.
As for a cure well , don’t bank on it however I say aim for the moon and you will hit the stars.
🙂

 

[rebrascora]

I think the problem may be that people interpret reversible as different things. Losing weight, exercising more and eating low carb can certainly enable some people to come off medication and maintain an HbA1c in the normal range and in that respect they may consider that they have reversed it, but I am pretty sure that if those people who successfully do this, revert to their old ways of eating more carbs and putting on weight, then they will likely also revert to diabetic range HbA1c readings again. In that respect they are still diabetic but they are controlling it with diet and exercise, so I would day that it probably is a life long condition. The people who make the real effort to do these things and get their readings into the normal range are probably the sort of people who have the mind set to continue to maintain control of their diet afterwards and therefore less likely to stray back into the diabetic range, so it may appear that they have reversed it.

 

[karloc]

We would all be ecstatic if one day in the future you came here to tell us you were in remission.
As for a cure well , don’t bank on it however I say aim for the moon and you will hit the stars.
🙂

Not sure I would say "cure" as I am sure that if I can reverse it I would always be more susceptible to Insulin resistance and would have to be more careful.

 

[karloc]

but I am pretty sure that if those people who successfully do this, revert to their old ways of eating more carbs and putting on weight, then they will likely also revert to diabetic range HbA1c readings again.

Could argue that is the same for a non diabetic. In fact that is how I put myself in this position 🙂.

Very interesting hearing peoples views 🙂.

 

[Eddy Edson]

I think the terms are a bit fuzzy. Also, there's a lack of long-term follow-up data for how long "remission" can last.

But I certainly think it's possible to for a bunch of T2D's to get to a point where they have normal BG levels and they don't have to worry much about how many carbs they eat, for some currently-unknown length of time, via losing weight and keeping it off.

That's the point of the "Newcastle" work, and that's where I'd say I've gotten to, for the moment.

 

[bakebeans]

I was told only a few weeks ago by my diabetic specialist that I had reversed my type 2 diabetes. My HbA1c was 56 in May and 38 in August. I cut out most carbs and lost almost 3 stone she said as long as the weight didn’t go back on my body should be able to use the insulin I make. A friend was also diagnosed a few years ago and after 2 years of hard work he now eats anything he likes, crisps, potatoes, bread anything and he’s still in normal range at his yearly HbA1c tests

 

[karloc]

I was told only a few weeks ago by my diabetic specialist that I had reversed my type 2 diabetes. My HbA1c was 56 in May and 38 in August. I cut out most carbs and lost almost 3 stone she said as long as the weight didn’t go back on my body should be able to use the insulin I make. A friend was also diagnosed a few years ago and after 2 years of hard work he now eats anything he likes, crisps, potatoes, bread anything and he’s still in normal range at his yearly HbA1c tests

Congrats was that just in about 4 months?

I do think that while weight is important not just for diabetes but just staying healthy in general I do think it is sometimes a bit over stated. It is possible, as i understand, to end up with high sugar around your body and fat on organs and diabetic with out being overweight.
I am going to loose more weight, its not just an excuse to myself to stay overweight.🙂

 

[bakebeans]

Congrats was that just in about 4 months?

I do think that while weight is important not just for diabetes but just staying healthy in general I do think it is sometimes a bit over stated. It is possible, as i understand, to end up with high sugar around your body and fat on organs and diabetic with out being overweight.
I am going to loose more weight, its not just an excuse to myself to stay overweight.🙂

Yes that was in 4 months I’ve still got another stone to lose to hope my next HbA1c in 6 months will still be good because of it. People here are great for support

 

[Ljc]

Not sure I would say "cure" as I am sure that if I can reverse it I would always be more susceptible to Insulin resistance and would have to be more careful.

When I spoke about remission, to me it means you still have the condition but it is extremely well controlled ie not active .

 

[karloc]

I believe it also depends on whether your pancreas is in decline, as eventually it will reach a point where it's struggling again. That could take years, of course.

Martin

I assume at that point it becomes Type 1

 

[khskel]

I assume at that point it becomes Type 1

No it wouldn't become type 1, but could become insulin dependent type 2.

 

[Ljc]

I assume at that point it becomes Type 1

No T1 is autoimmune. The immune system for some reason starts destroying the Beta cells (insulin producing cells) in the pancreas.that why people with T1 need to go straight onto insulin.

Imo the causes of T2 are errr complicated 😡.bWhat can sometimes happen with T2 is that it very gradually progresses but it can’t morph into another type of diabetes.
As you get to know those of us with T2 better you will see (sometimes in our signature) that we are on insulin.

With T2 we often have to a greater or lesser degree , insulin resistance.
Our natural insulin may not be as effective, ie it’s defective in some way
We may not make enough of our own
Often it is a combination of any of the above .
See what I mean by it’s complicated lol.

 

[karloc]

My bad sorry
I had just assumed that needing insulin basically meant T1
I only know one T1 and it was not autoimmune it was the loss of her pancreas.
Learning every day, its like being at school without the bike sheds

 

[silentsquirrel]

My bad sorry
I had just assumed that needing insulin basically meant T1
I only know one T1 and it was not autoimmune it was the loss of her pancreas.
Learning every day, its like being at school without the bike sheds

So with no pancreas she would actually be Type 3c ! - but would be treated as T1.

 

[Sharron1]

I prefer to think that I will always be T2 but a well managed T2. As long as I keep to the foods i know are ok and every now and then test, I simply hope that will be that. But as others have noted D is a b***** . I never take it forgranted.

 

[Drummer]

I have needed to eat a low carb diet all my adult life - for energy, weight control, and a feeling of well being.
My diagnosis came after almost two years following a high carb low fat diet which was supposed to reduce cholesterol.
My doctors were always dead against low carb, despite my description of problems when following their healthy diets low calorie, low fat, high carb.
For me, my present situation is my normal, once again putting on weight easily but sticking to low carb to counter that.

 

[Pine Marten]

I prefer to think that I will always be T2 but a well managed T2. As long as I keep to the foods i know are ok and every now and then test, I simply hope that will be that. But as others have noted D is a b***** . I never take it forgranted.

Yes, this is basically my view. When people talk to me and very often have no idea, I liken it to being a well-managed alcoholic, ie if they go back to guzzling drink then they will be back to square one. If I go back to guzzling loads of carbs.... I won't be well-managed any more. I've found that people seem to understand that analogy easily rather than being baffled by talk of blood glucose, testing, carbs etc.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

My feeling is that T2 is an umbrella term for a number of very different but related conditions, including some with a significant genetic component, some powered very much by weight gain (general or visceral/TOFI), some characterised by insulin resistance, others which progress and various complex combinations of these and still other components!

So really I would say it depends on quite which subset of T2 you happen to have whether or not you can put your T2 into remission, reversal and whether or not it will continue to progress over time.