CherryAA
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 2,171
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Diet only
I really wasn't sure how to answer this. Judging by its popularity, it is pretty clear that we really are in a post truth era where anything that is said by experts and scientists is treated with such scorn. Is the only truth to be found on social media and web forums?
My 5 year old, when told something he doesn't like sticks his fingers in his ears , closes his eyes and says 'bleh, bleh , bleh' but I would expect adults to engage in debate instead.
1) If you read the research you will see that it is an observational study, asking people about past behaviour. A cohort study, like you describe where some are asked to exercise and some are told not to would be unethical ( and illegal in the UK ) as people would have to be asked to do something (eliminate physical activity) which is KNOWN to be harmful.
2) WHO advocates a diet that is moderate in terms of carbs, fat & protein and has been found through extensive research to be the most advantageous to the greatest number of people. This should be combined with physical activity (4 or 5 short walks a week is all that is required, not marathons or excessive gym time) for optimal health.
Processed food is strongly advised against , as are all form of refined sugar.
There is absolutely nothing here at all to support big food and big pharma. the very opposite in fact. The current western diet is strongly advised against.
http://www.who.int/features/qa/cancer-red-meat/en/
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs394/en/
I have included links to information on diet and the risks of eating processed meat (and red meat to a lesser extent) though as you seem to regard all research as questionable without even reading it I doubt that this will be of any use.
As said before I have no issue with any adult making a choice to do whatever they wish. I would rather they made an informed choice in possession of all the facts but that would be a persons own choice. What I have a problem with is when people advise others to pursue a course of action without giving them as much relevant information, especially as this is not based on the best available science.
There appears to be a belief on this forum that eating large quantities of animal fat is entirely harmless and taking no exercise is without its own risks. It may be that these risks are less than the risk of high BG/insulin but there are risks just the same.
Wishing a high fat / low activity life to be harmless does not make it so. Live it by all means but please don't advise other to do so.
I think you are rather missing the point about why we are making a fuss about your post.
To be clear, I love exercise, I love the ability to exercise, I love that I can now exercise and I have every intention of doing more of it . It makes me feel more supple, it makes me happier and in general terms its an all round good thing. There is no dispute at all about that. I am also clear that it will probably help me lead a happier life whether longer or not. I hope everyone here who has the ability to, takes the time to do as much of it as they personally can, including wiggling round in a wheelchair if they can.
I also agree that processed food of all kinds is to be viewed with suspicion.
I don't buy the red meat is bad lobby, not because I have not read about it, but because having read the various claims of both sides I have personally chosen to side with the carnivores - each to their own on that subject,
You may find this particular study interesting. Far too often research makes assumptions about one thing driven off associations from two entirely different things. https://deniseminger.com/2010/07/07/the-china-study-fact-or-fallac/
We have lived for many years with the heart lipid hypothesis and the resulting LDL cholesterol debacle, driven off these very same -Observational studies. The state of nutrition research is actually very poor compared to many other sciences.
There is also a substantial body of research around the mechanics of weight loss, which suggests that actually exercising is not necessarily a good weight loss tool. The reason for that is that for many people the increase in appetite more than offsets the calories expended and because it takes very little food to outweigh the benefits of the exercise, many people find that adding exercise to a dieting regime in the early days can be counterproductive not least because at that stage people have very little concept of just how few calories exercise uses, but the actual effort of doing the exercise is so great that its all too easy to rapidly slow down weight loss by exercising and then having a snack before making these connections.
Once for example one has started to become fat adapted, it becomes a lot easier to carry out exercise without immediately turning to more food which is a typical process when still in high carb mode,
There is a lot of research currently coming to light which shows that it is substantial weight loss that is the key to improving diabetes markers.
It is also the case the many people suffering diabetes, particularly at high levels of blood sugar and possibly high obesity will find it very difficult to exercise initially.
The " eat less / move more- your obesity is your own fault through gluttony and sloth", has made very little progress in solving the problems being created by current westerns style diets ,. That particular guilt is one that I and no doubt the majority of people on here also feel in their gut is true no matter ho much we research the metabolic impacts of our situation.
The very good news about all of this , is that because diet is so influential in recovery, if someone cannot actually exercise in the beginning, either through temporary or permanent mobility problems, that does not prevent them improving their health substantially via diet. Telling such a person that he cannot possibly improve his health without exercise is not particularly helpful. I doubt there is anyone on the planet who actually thinks that being a couch potato is better for his health than moving. There are many people on this website with mobility problems and all of them are doing their very best to improve their personal situations in their own difficult circumstances. My hat goes off to all of them.
My advice is simply - step one - don't panic- you can make a huge difference, step two start to get the nutrition right - follow the simple chart until you have had chance to find out more - look up low carb, look up diet doctor .com you will probably progress naturally to keto, to intermittent fasting. Along this journey you are going to start to want to do more and that's great, the sooner the better but the first step is simply getting started and not letting yourself be frightened by what seems to be the sheer enormity of the task ahead which for some will be huge. ( me included )