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Drastic diet 'reverses' Type 2 diabetes

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This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
I guess I am just cluching at straws...My diet really is not that calorie fuelled now, I can only eat small amounts at a time as my Gall Bladder has caused alot of pressure in my tummy, so I just feel bloated all the time!....Like I have explained before, I just feel lost and my DSN says they can not help me...600 cals is really low, perhaps if I aim for, say 1000 cals, see how I go with that?

I don't want to have a Gastric BYPASS....I am too scared! Now, with this research all over the TV, I've just had my family statically explaining to me that 'I can be cured' All because of the Paper and TV reports that jsut glorify that this IS a cure for Diabetes...Well type 2 that is...And of course, this fuels the notion that this condition is all my fault because of what I eat!!...It creates just More predjudice against Fat people!

I am just at a loss and willing to try anything to get my weight down...even if I can just reduce my Insulin intake, that would be something.

Thank you for your posts...Ellowyne
 
I am sure you are not alone Ellowyne, which is why the reporting of such stories is very irresponsible in the way the research has been presented, peppering it with the word 'cure' when it is nothing of the sort. I do wish there was something I could suggest, but I'm really not qualified. As I said before, it could be worth going to your GP and asking him about the diet and if there is a safe alternative that you could try. It's clear that you are highly motivated and it is his/her duty to help find a way that fits with your physical difficulties.
 
That does imply Andy, that the 600 cal diet in the trial was merely a means to an end.

ie. they could have put them on a 1200 cal diet and may have acheived the same outcome but would have taken a lot longer and may have needed more vigorous exercise.

It's something that may be of relevance to anyone, obese or thin, active or sedentary, who has fatty deposits in or around their organs.

No idea how the layman goes about measuring said deposits, or whether we just have to remain active and eat less saturated fats ? :confused:

Rob
 
Robster65 said:
That does imply Andy, that the 600 cal diet in the trial was merely a means to an end.

ie. they could have put them on a 1200 cal diet and may have acheived the same outcome but would have taken a lot longer and may have needed more vigorous exercise.
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I must say that is my take on things given my personal experience (but I may be wrong!)

Robster65 said:
It's something that may be of relevance to anyone, obese or thin, active or sedentary, who has fatty deposits in or around their organs.

No idea how the layman goes about measuring said deposits, or whether we just have to remain active and eat less saturated fats ? :confused:

Rob
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My snazzy set of scales does provide a measure of visceral fat (i.e. that surrounding the internal organs ... it probably also gives a 'guide' to that deposited in pancreas and liver, but that is a supposition on my part). Anyway, as my weight decreased, the level of visceral fat was also decreasing according to the measure (it's just a number. I started at 11, 12 or 13, I think. I'm now down to 8 (and was at 7 before putting on weight again).

Andy 🙂
 
Hi, I'm totally new here, this is my first post. I have been in the hospital for 30 days until my release last Tuesday. I started on 600 calories a day last Thursday. I went to the hospital to try to get one of my arteries propped open with stents in combination with stem cell therapy. The artery they are working on was totally closed. They have worked half way through the clog and will finish up when I return in 8 weeks. I have called my self pre-diabetic for years but I have had my doubts about being entitled to the 'pre' prefix anymore. First day in hospital I had fasting glucose of 14. The nurses totally freaked about the fat too. One nurse came into my room holding a vial of my blood up showing me the deep layer of fat floating on top. Actually scolded me! During my stay the article appeared about the 600 cal diet study. Talked my doctor into supervising me on that instead of starting all the meds he was pushing on me. I got lots of optifast on hand now and salad fixins. Tonight my post-prandial reading was 5.5. That's cool. No idea the last time I had blood sugar that low. Anyhow, I had all the blood tests and scans etc. like in the study. Gotta go in each week for repeat testing as the doctor wants to know my progress step by step. Doctor calls me each evening at 8 to check on me as well. I know the article was dressed up pretty nice as a cure and that it's way too soon to know how well this could work in general and how long it lasts, but I gotta give it a try. Before now every time i start any diet or exercise I get incapacitated by a gallstone attack. But no one will operate because of my poor hear function. I need my life back. Wish me luck.
 
Hi ric. Welcome to the forum.🙂

Has all of this occurred in China or elsewhere ?

Obviously, the 600 cal diet will merely burn off the excess fat while you're on it but surely it will return once you go back to normal eating ?

Rob
 
Thanks for the welcome Rob. All this is happening in China. I wouldn't say merely burn off excess fat. If I lose the fat from my liver and pancreas maybe I can have restoration of insulin production and sensitivity. Regarding the return of the fat, I think I stand a chance of not letting that happen. In eight weeks they will finish putting the stents in my artery then they will remove the gallstone I have, and that combined with the weight loss should allow me to have a more active life. I've changed my work conditions so I don't have to sit at a desk all day anymore. Found some bowling and tennis partners. Been learning some delicious low-carb recipes. I aught to change my name because I'm not going to be the same old Ric. In fact, you can call me Ric2.0! hehehe
 
Hi Ric, welcome to the forum 🙂 I'm surprised your doctor is permitting such an extreme diet, given your other health problems. I would have thought it would place extra stresses on you and potentially compromise your heart further since your heart is a muscle like any other and starvation diets have a tendency to leech protein from muscle tissue. I wish you success, but doubt you would find a doctor here who would approve such a treatment outside of a clinical trial.
 
Thank you for the welcome Northerner. Actually very low calorie diets (VLCD - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlcd) are quite common in the US and often used by doctors where problems from obesity are greater than the risks. At the University of Washington in Seattle where I am from, a study was done on some fellow fatties using a 660 cal. diet for 3 months to see what effect that had on heart function and there was no change. Additionally, my doctor here consulted with my doctor in America who did my heart bypass some years ago (which is why there are weekly blood tests, etc, during this). So I feel fairly safe considering the scrutiny I'm under.
 
Northerner said:
Hi Ric, welcome to the forum 🙂 I'm surprised your doctor is permitting such an extreme diet, given your other health problems. I would have thought it would place extra stresses on you and potentially compromise your heart further since your heart is a muscle like any other and starvation diets have a tendency to leech protein from muscle tissue. I wish you success, but doubt you would find a doctor here who would approve such a treatment outside of a clinical trial.
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Just wouldn't happen here unless under strict medical supervision, the diet suggested here are near starvation diets and would impede on the ability to function both physically and mentally, without professional supervision the diet would not normally be authorised and find it surprising that the Chinese Medical Profession are allowing this to happen.
 
Ric in China said:
Thank you for the welcome Northerner. Actually very low calorie diets (VLCD - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlcd) are quite common in the US and often used by doctors where problems from obesity are greater than the risks. At the University of Washington in Seattle where I am from, a study was done on some fellow fatties using a 660 cal. diet for 3 months to see what effect that had on heart function and there was no change. Additionally, my doctor here consulted with my doctor in America who did my heart bypass some years ago (which is why there are weekly blood tests, etc, during this). So I feel fairly safe considering the scrutiny I'm under.
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It does sound as though you are getting a good level of support Ric, I hope it works out for you, it sounds a very tough option. I think that, under our health system it would be unlikely that a doctor would be able to provide that level of individual support.
 
I would imagine the reduction in physical stress from the fat loss around the organs (including the heart) would balance out the reduction in available calories. And once the body is in fat burning mode, it should tick over provided you don't try to do too much.

Hope it gives you the opportunities you hope for.🙂

Maybe it will become a drastic measures procedure over here.

Rob
 
Ric in China said:
Thanks for the welcome Rob. All this is happening in China. I wouldn't say merely burn off excess fat. If I lose the fat from my liver and pancreas maybe I can have restoration of insulin production and sensitivity. Regarding the return of the fat, I think I stand a chance of not letting that happen. In eight weeks they will finish putting the stents in my artery then they will remove the gallstone I have, and that combined with the weight loss should allow me to have a more active life. I've changed my work conditions so I don't have to sit at a desk all day anymore. Found some bowling and tennis partners. Been learning some delicious low-carb recipes. I aught to change my name because I'm not going to be the same old Ric. In fact, you can call me Ric2.0! hehehe
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Hi and welcome, Ric! Good luck with the change of diet. As you already are aware there are healthier food options - you may find that you enjoy the healthier options more than those you have been eating. I certainly did.

Richard
 
Does anyone know how this trial has now been left at? are they going to continue with it? is it worth emailing DUK to find out? i wonder if it would work on say 800 cals or maybe 1000? i think i could possibly manage that but definately not 600 :(
 
carina62 said:
Does anyone know how this trial has now been left at? are they going to continue with it? is it worth emailing DUK to find out? i wonder if it would work on say 800 cals or maybe 1000? i think i could possibly manage that but definately not 600 :(
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This is the problem I think - it was only a very small study to test a hypothesis, or rather just to see what would happen - I imagine it will be quite a while before another, bigger study is established so that greater confidence in the results can be obtained. If indeed they increase the calories then we are likely to end up with a diet that thousands of people already know can be effective in many cases - a low-carb weight-loss diet that reduces insulin resistance to a point where medication can be stopped and levels come within range.
 
a low-carb weight-loss diet that reduces insulin resistance to a point where medication can be stopped and levels come within range
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I think that there is a difference, people on a VLCarbdiet may still have insulin resistance but are not challenging it, they have to continue to eat very few carbohydrates. Anecdotally many say that they can't eat a small portion of starchy carbs without a big rise in levels.
After the initial 6 weeks,the people on the trial ate 'normal healthy diets' and one would assume that means the diets with a relatively high proportion of carbs. During that period, their insulin levels continued to fall.
 
WOuld I right in thinking that the combination of ultra low calorie diet and the exercise regime was aimed at 'flushing out' the fat from around/in the organs and once acheived, they could then eat carbs as normal, but if they went back to saturated fats, they would find their resistance returns due to deposition around the organs again ?

ie. as diabetics we concentrate on carbs, but this is more about calories and fat. Once the fat is gone, the carbs are not an issue in themselves.

Rob
 
HelenM said:
I think that there is a difference, people on a VLCarbdiet may still have insulin resistance but are not challenging it, they have to continue to eat very few carbohydrates. Anecdotally many say that they can't eat a small portion of starchy carbs without a big rise in levels.
After the initial 6 weeks,the people on the trial ate 'normal healthy diets' and one would assume that means the diets with a relatively high proportion of carbs. During that period, their insulin levels continued to fall.
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Have you found the full article text yet helen ?
11 people took part in the trial and only 7 benefiited i.e. its not the cure all that has been touted.
The 7 who showed improvement had insulin production improved at 3 months after the 12 week test. But the trial was in 2009 (?) - what was the position them six months after and a year after ? and now Its a temporary fix not a "reversal".
 
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