- Messages
- 784
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Diet only
On your second paragraph, I made specific reference to me and others regarding T2. You have no reason to tie it with 'other scenarios', and I don't suggest that. My T2 is in my control.No, appreciate your detailed response. I do understand your points and think there's definitely validity to what you say. However, when you say:
"Many of us, as T2 diabetics, have experienced first hand how a change of lifestyle can lead to a reversal of our symptoms and being able to come off medication."
I worry that might predispose you to believe those changes would have the same effect in other scenarios where it might not necessarily be so simple. I'm not saying this to wipe away your whole response as invalid, but it's always important to avoid applying experience outside of its relevant context. It's certainly more comforting to believe that everything is within our immediate control, as that gives us complete and total power over it.
The article is very wide-ranging in what it's talking about, and there's not clear evidence that lifestyle changes could eradicate cancer (which, to oversimplify for a second, is due in part to what Cancer it is bodies aren't made to last forever).
To sum up, I think there's a balance between the points you're making and acknowledging there are some things outwith our individual control which do require investigation by specialists to make any progress, and I worry the article doesn't strike that balance.
The fact that I have lost weight and improved my diet may well have lessened the chance of my arterial problems developing because my glucose is under pretty good control. I have a blood test tomorrow which will follow 5 weeks on the wagon so it'll be interesting to see what happens. (Though I know that the HbA1C measures the past 3 months).
Regarding cancer, there is overwhelming evidence that obesity can vastly increase the liklihood of developing a range of cancers. Tackle obesity, you decrease the chance of cancer.
So much of it comes back to diet and lifestyle but you're quite right, there are some things we can't do much about. The author of the research was mentioning areas where she thought we could make a difference.