Dec 2014 update: New research on the Low Carb Diet in general practice

[Andy12345]

"telling me a number of the contributors know more than some health professionals about diabetes"

my cat knows more than some health professionals about diabetes

 

[miriamy]

Tee hee. 100% protein diet

Eating and exercising my way from manic to moderate Miriam.... and a steady blood glucose.

 

[Madbazoo]

So sorry to hear you didn't win as I'm sure all other members of this forum will be also. I have sent a copy of your paper to my GP with a request for me to present our low carb approach to his other type 2 patients. As a member of his PRG group I will put some added pressure on the practice as well.

Lets keep up the fight.


Type 2. Was out of control till I found this forum. Low Carb and testing saved me. Glucophage 1 per day down from 4. HBa1c down to 36

 

[Squire Fulwood]

I went to see my DN yesterday about feet. More importantly I gave her a copy of The Paper as well as a digest of Southport GP's posts so that she could follow the trail through the annual conference and the BMJ contest.

She is an enlightened DN who once said that she wished she could find a way of stopping the dietitians from pushing the carbs with every meal line. She was delighted with the paperwork.

I didn't have to convince her of anything but I used The Paper for what it was given to me for and I got the feeling that word was getting out there.

 

[Squire Fulwood]

What a long way we have come from my being removed as a possible blog troll last year.

Ouch!

 

[AndBreathe]

BMJ Awards 2014
No trophy I'm afraid , initially a bit disappointed I'll admit- but how amazing that a low carb for diabetes project should end up in the top five in two categories for the most important medical awards in the land ! The editor of the BMJ herself read out the citation about our work and told me privately about her interest in our research.
Before the ceremony Dr John Briffa of 'Beat the diet trap'. Book fame came for a two hour meeting to chat about the low carb thing. He is well aware of this forum and it's huge following, telling me a number of the contributors know more than some health professionals about diabetes (I agree) !!!
Finally just to say thanks for all the support I've had from forum members. What a long way we have come from my being removed as a possible blog troll last year.

Southport - Do you have links to anything in the BMJ I can't quote to another GP? I don't have to be able to access it myself.

I'm pulling together material to write a paper for my GP, who is head of Practise, but freely admits diabetes isn't his thing. I'm keen to include as much peer information for him as I can, and I think the BMJ stuff will be important.

I have done well, reducing my scores to non-diabetic levels, without medication, and maintaining them for a few months thus far (although I am painfully aware this is the hard part). Sadly, the practise can claim no kudos in that, having recommended a low fat diet, "and avoid the sugary stuff, obviously", and decreed no need to self test. I want to make a case for revised dietary advice and support of testing from diagnosis, even if for a defined period, or self-funded. Not everyone is lucky enough to find this place, or to have a mind that challenges illogical logic. But, those people's health and well being is just as important as mine.

Many thanks, and well done, yet again, on all your hard work. I'm sure you've had your own torrid time with doubters and terminally resistant peers.

 

[IanD]

BMJ Awards 2014
No trophy I'm afraid , initially a bit disappointed I'll admit- but how amazing that a low carb for diabetes project should end up in the top five in two categories for the most important medical awards in the land ! The editor of the BMJ herself read out the citation about our work and told me privately about her interest in our research.
Before the ceremony Dr John Briffa of 'Beat the diet trap'. Book fame came for a two hour meeting to chat about the low carb thing. He is well aware of this forum and it's huge following, telling me a number of the contributors know more than some health professionals about diabetes (I agree) !!!
Finally just to say thanks for all the support I've had from forum members. What a long way we have come from my being removed as a possible blog troll last year.

If you remember, I welcomed you when you arrived with a personal message, & tried to start a Low Carb thread so we could discuss your findings. It was moderated & locked

I'm glad you have stayed & contributed - & taken up the cause. Thanks.

 

[Dillinger]

BMJ Awards 2014
No trophy I'm afraid

You were robbed! Thank you for persevering with this and for your continuing contribution to this forum; it is an astonishing breath of fresh air to have someone in your position agreeing with the low-carb approach!

Best

Dillinger

 

[miriamy]

If you remember, I welcomed you when you arrived with a personal message, & tried to start a Low Carb thread so we could discuss your findings. It was moderated & locked

I'm glad you have stayed & contributed - & taken up the cause. Thanks.

And I'm glad too. Low carb is a key component to my own wellbeing and is thanks entirely to the persistence of everyone here on this forum.

Eating and exercising my way from manic to moderate Miriam.... and a steady blood glucose.

 

[Southport GP]

Southport - Do you have links to anything in the BMJ I can't quote to another GP? I don't have to be able to access it myself.

I'm pulling together material to write a paper for my GP, who is head of Practise, but freely admits diabetes isn't his thing. I'm keen to include as much peer information for him as I can, and I think the BMJ stuff will be important.

I have done well, reducing my scores to non-diabetic levels, without medication, and maintaining them for a few months thus far (although I am painfully aware this is the hard part). Sadly, the practise can claim no kudos in that, having recommended a low fat diet, "and avoid the sugary stuff, obviously", and decreed no need to self test. I want to make a case for revised dietary advice and support of testing from diagnosis, even if for a defined period, or self-funded. Not everyone is lucky enough to find this place, or to have a mind that challenges illogical logic. But, those people's health and well being is just as important as mine.

Many thanks, and well done, yet again, on all your hard work. I'm sure you've had your own torrid time with doubters and terminally resistant peers.

The final page of the BMJ is given over to Minerva a 'mystery' columnist who I met last week at the Awards .I was delighted to find this week's column (17 May) starts off with a summary of a Californian study published in Diabetes Care. 227 patients were randomised to low carb or low fat diets and compared with controls who just got general advice. Yet again weight loss and improvement in HbA1c significantly better in the low carb group, with results very similar at one year to my own study. So your GP has only to turn to the final page of this weeks Bmj . Hope this helps !

 

[AndBreathe]

The final page of the BMJ is given over to Minerva a 'mystery' columnist who I met last week at the Awards .I was delighted to find this week's column (17 May) starts off with a summary of a Californian study published in Diabetes Care. 227 patients were randomised to low carb or low fat diets and compared with controls who just got general advice. Yet again weight loss and improvement in HbA1c significantly better in the low carb group, with results very similar at one year to my own study. So your GP has only to turn to the final page of this weeks Bmj . Hope this helps !

Brilliant, thanks.

 

[Bebo321]

Looking through the forum I was sorry to hear how some of you met a rather closed response from your health professionals .About a year ago I began working with a group of 19 pre-diabetic and type two diabetic patients (insulin dependant patients were not included) who were interested in maximising the benefits of a good diet and wanted to try a lower carb, higher fat diet. I thought if I could get the work published by a reputable peer reviewed journal you would then have something to share with your doctors,nurses and dieticians. I am particularly interested in the goal of maximising the effect of diet BEFORE starting medication and find many patients agree.
I have just heard the work is to be published in March. The idea is that after the article is published by Practical Diabetes it will be free to view for you all

THE RESULTS : Weight and HbA1c down significantly ,also improvements in blood pressure,liver function tests and interestingly cholesterol despite a diet higher in fats (coconut oil ,butter,olive oil and lots of eggs) Publication is due in a few weeks will see then if I can upload an abstract and a link to the entire thing. Over the last year I have come to feel that the starch in bread, pasta (even whole meal) rice and potatoes is actually concentrated sugar, with a higher glycemic index than table sugar itself. So no surprise that diabetics may struggle to deal with these items in their diet. It seems to me that HOWEVER any particular overweight patient looses weight their Type 2 diabetes improves. This can lead to some rather stark choices between weight loss and medication!

Update march 24/03/2014; find the full article free to view here;

http://www.practicaldiabetes.com/SpringboardWebApp/userfiles/espdi/file/March 2014/PP Unwin final proofs revised.pdf
The idea is that you can also show it to health care professionals involved to show them its a valid choice of diet

Going 'online' has its pitfalls. last year my children thought it was hilarious that some of you thought I was a troll, that has now been sorted out. Another is that it's not really ethical for a doctor to give specific advice which is why I cannot answer questions relating to an individual case -sorry. My hope was that the work could help inform the debate between people with diabetes and the health professionals who care for them.

Great news Southport GP!
Unfortunately there is very little peer reviewed research in this area which is perhaps why Healthcare professionals aren't always forward thinking in their approach.
TeamBG are interested in promoting opportunities for research around diabetes, exercise and diet in the future - data is sorely lacking particularly around T2d. Evidencing the benefits with research is the only way to transform diabetes care.
Absolutely brilliant initiative on your part to do this - and a great example to other practitioners to take a more proactive approach and become part of the solution rather than perpetuate the problem.
Www.teambloodglucose.com www.gbdoc.co.uk

 

[Southport GP]

It's so heartening to read all your encouraging comments THANK YOU
Update; some of you will remember the research originally on 18 patients - well now there are 36 !! showing very similar results with average weight loss of just under 9.5 kg and very significant drop in HbA1c
A NEW ANGLE: What has got my interest now is the very surprising improvements in liver function which occur rapidly if on a low carb diet So much so from them I can predict who has lost weight and who hasn't before the person steps into the surgery. I wonder if too many folk link abnormal liver function with alcohol when carbs are to blame. I know I often made that mistake before I 'saw the light' Thoughts please

 

[Andy12345]

thoughts? i love you! (in a non gay way lol)




Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[Bebo321]

Hi Southport GP,
Could you elaborate on that please? What improvements are you seeing to liver function - and what results are you basing the improvements on?
Fantastic that you now have 36 patients in the study!
Have you thought of incorporating the benefits of exercise in the study at all?
Very excited for you - keep up the great work!

 

[Totto]

It's so heartening to read all your encouraging comments THANK YOU
Update; some of you will remember the research originally on 18 patients - well now there are 36 !! showing very similar results with average weight loss of just under 9.5 kg and very significant drop in HbA1c
A NEW ANGLE: What has got my interest now is the very surprising improvements in liver function which occur rapidly if on a low carb diet So much so from them I can predict who has lost weight and who hasn't before the person steps into the surgery. I wonder if too many folk link abnormal liver function with alcohol when carbs are to blame. I know I often made that mistake before I 'saw the light' Thoughts please

There are a few, very short studies on low carb and fatty liver.
http://www.diabetesincontrol.com/in...ntent&view=article&id=10796&catid=1&Itemid=17

On the link with fructose http://nutrition.highwire.org/content/138/8/1452.full.pdf
http://christinecronau.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/nrgastro.2010.41.pdf

Dr Eenfeldt on the subject of fatty liver and LCHF http://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb-diet-best-fatty-liver

I know I have seen a very short term indeed study, think it was only six days, where the liver fat was reduced at surprising speed but can´t find the link now, sorry.

I was reported for advocating the dangerous high fat diet to a member who had been diagnosed with fatty liver so I am relieved you mentioned this.

What about fatty liver and high triglycerides on low carb high fat?

 

[Mud Island Dweller]

interesting comment on liver l have Gilberts so l am also doing myself a favour with that low carbing l do.

 

[Madbazoo]

I was diagnosed with a fatty liver in 2002 supposedly relating to alcohol consumption. Subsequent blood tests have confirmed that it wasn't getting worse but no test was carried out when I had my last HbA1c last month.

At my review I asked for the liver results as I wanted to make sure my LCHF diet wasn't affecting it. A further test revealed that my liver function had returned to normal.

So benefit of diet for me, in 9 months, has been reduced HbA1c from 65 to 35, blood pressure down from 140/82 to 119/65, weight loss of 3 and half stone, cholesterol, kidney and liver tests all returned to normal. In addition have stopped taking Glic and reduced Metformin from 4 to 1 per day


Type 2. Was out of control till I found this forum. Low Carb and testing saved me. Glucophage 1 per day down from 4. HBa1c down to 36

 

[AndBreathe]

It's so heartening to read all your encouraging comments THANK YOU
Update; some of you will remember the research originally on 18 patients - well now there are 36 !! showing very similar results with average weight loss of just under 9.5 kg and very significant drop in HbA1c
A NEW ANGLE: What has got my interest now is the very surprising improvements in liver function which occur rapidly if on a low carb diet So much so from them I can predict who has lost weight and who hasn't before the person steps into the surgery. I wonder if too many folk link abnormal liver function with alcohol when carbs are to blame. I know I often made that mistake before I 'saw the light' Thoughts please

What sort of percentage improvement have you seen? I'm just interested. Thankfully my LFTs have never been cause for concern.

 

[Spiker]

thoughts? i love you! (in a non gay way lol)




Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

Yeah I'm totally gay for you Scardoc!

Seriously the liver function angle is incredible and totally bears out Prof Taylor. I hope every NHS GP takes note of your findings and takes them on board.