Looking through the forum I was sorry to hear how some of you met a rather closed response from your health professionals .About two years ago I began working with a group of 19 pre-diabetic and type two diabetic patients (insulin dependent patients were not included) who were interested in maximizing 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 maximizing the effect of diet BEFORE starting medication and find many patients agree.
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) 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/Sp.../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
Update two; 26/12/2014; how are we doing after a year on the diet?
The success of this small pilot enabled us to get a grant from the Southport CCG to run nurse-led evening clinics and extend the low carb approach.
Now after an average of a year on the low-carb diet the number of type 2 diabetics in the cohort has increased from 19 to 31, the average weight loss is still 9.113 Kg (95% confidence interval of this difference: From 6.569 to 11.656) with a mean drop in HbA1c of 8.482mmol/mol (95% confidence interval of this difference: From 2.079 to 14.88) None of the patients who gave up metformin have needed to re start it either.
Coming up next -The liver and low carbing, very nearly ready for publication
Please find more detail in my Dec 2015 Diabesity in Practice article free to view here;
http://www.diabesityinpractice.co.uk/media/content/_master/3963/files/pdf/dip3-4-131-4.pdf
One way or another we have all eaten our way into this diabesity epidemic, this has been my way to help patients eat their way out of it again!
Going 'online' is as a GP has some dangers which is why I must point out it's not really ethical for a doctor to give specific advice so 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.
And finally.., I just want to say how much I have learnt from the clever folk on this great blog. Thanks!!
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) 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/Sp.../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
Update two; 26/12/2014; how are we doing after a year on the diet?
The success of this small pilot enabled us to get a grant from the Southport CCG to run nurse-led evening clinics and extend the low carb approach.
Now after an average of a year on the low-carb diet the number of type 2 diabetics in the cohort has increased from 19 to 31, the average weight loss is still 9.113 Kg (95% confidence interval of this difference: From 6.569 to 11.656) with a mean drop in HbA1c of 8.482mmol/mol (95% confidence interval of this difference: From 2.079 to 14.88) None of the patients who gave up metformin have needed to re start it either.
Coming up next -The liver and low carbing, very nearly ready for publication
Please find more detail in my Dec 2015 Diabesity in Practice article free to view here;
http://www.diabesityinpractice.co.uk/media/content/_master/3963/files/pdf/dip3-4-131-4.pdf
One way or another we have all eaten our way into this diabesity epidemic, this has been my way to help patients eat their way out of it again!
Going 'online' is as a GP has some dangers which is why I must point out it's not really ethical for a doctor to give specific advice so 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.
And finally.., I just want to say how much I have learnt from the clever folk on this great blog. Thanks!!
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