Hi everyone
I have reversed my diabetes type 2 in three months and I would like to share this success with you as some of your answers on the forum were helpful. I feel I could have achieved this sooner though if I had not persisted in testing the effect of known problem foods. This result was achieved as summarised in the highlighted paragraph below and the remaining text was how it manifested itself for me which can be ignored.
For over 3 years my GP had monitored my blood sugar levels, without treatment, as I had resisted his attempt to give me yet one more pill. I was being treated for high blood pressure, gout, high cholesterol and high tri-glycerides with a pill for each and aspirin just in case. Also, I was obese at 16 stone with a height of 5' 4" at the age of 75. My GP did not push the diabetes issue as I was always of a jolly nature, never ill and there were no outward signs that there was anything amiss on the inside, only his tests proved that and however disastrous these respective three monthly blood tests were my GP said there were plenty of people in the community that would happily change places with me. I do not drink nor smoke, which habits I gave up some years ago.
In September 2015 I followed the advice shown on this forum and invested in a blood sugar self test meter. Before purchasing the self test meter I scrutinized the forum and was rather concerned at the reports on a variation in accuracy. I checked with Boots pharmacy and they showed me a circular from a manufacturer that simply re-iterated their usage instructions. I can say that accuracy was never an issue with me as any abnormalities could be traced back to my diet. Man not machine error.
Wow ! 10.2 for starters and this was maintained throughout the day. Studying the forum suggestions I blitzed all the major known carbs. No bread, potatoes, pasta, rice, cakes nor biscuits (life was hardly worth living). Within two days my blood sugar levels were down around the 7s and 8s. Clearly I was on the right lines but not good enough. Further research revealed that the food packaging details were to be subject to close scrutiny CARBOHYDRATES OF WHICH ..... SUGARS. Surprise, I thought my diet was Spartan to say the least but further measures of the draconian variety were needed. The main culprits were the 5-a-day recommendations and cereals as I had turned to these since they were recommended! Wrong, wrong, wrong, this was like putting a fire out with petrol. A Holford recommendation that porridge was excellent had me peaking out after breakfast to over 10. I threw his book away after I had tried his GI load method which was neither helpful nor productive. l looked at food packaging and started to eliminate from my shopping basket anything that had sugars from carbohydrates at .5 per 100 grams and as a starting point I was restricting each meal to no more than 2.5 grams of sugar per meal and often below which turned out to be a very lucky guess indeed. This was followed for about a month with various attempts to ease the hunger. I had eliminated snacks on the way (no more apples, etc) with varying success until I was strict with my own diet. A 100 gram pack of cheese or meat conveniently broke down to 25 grams per slice and practically zero sugar content and no more than half a medium carrot or 3 spoons of pulses.. I was down to below 6 both pre and post meal testing during the day. I stopped testing in the daytime and stuck to my restricted diet. One thing that was noticeable was that what was good for cholesterol, etc was not good for diabetes. My GP confirmed diabetes as the greater threat of all.
Now for the nocturnal test. Perfect daytime blood sugar level readings but the nocturnal level was still in the high 7s. Disastrous and disheartening. I started to work backwards starting with the evening meal. I changed my main meal to mid-day and have a very light meal at night. My pattern of eating was breakfast 9.00, lunch 12.00 and evening at 6.30pm. Clearly this needed adjusting. Breakfast any time between 4.00am and 6.00am. This was easy as I suffer with alopea (disturbed sleep pattern shared by Hitler who took sleeping pills and Churchill who took frequent naps...guess who won). By now I had changed my meals to 6-12-6 with a resulting slight drop in the nocturnal blood sugar test but was still no lower than 6.9. I attacked the evening meal and restricted my protein to 2 slices of processed cheese or 2 slices of meat with 2 baby tomatoes and a handful of spinach. Voila! It was the middle of December and my nocturnal blood sugar level was in the lower 5s. All was normal. I tried to up the anti by slightly relaxing my diet but nature was not to be deceived. The previous rigours were re-imposed with success coming virtually overnight. 5.5 is now my nocturnal blood sugar test average.
I relaxed over Christmas by not taking any readings and allowed myself to overindulge. After the leftovers had gone, 5 days later, I started taking tests again and returned to my Spartan diet. 2 days and my readings were all below 6 and this included the nocturnal test. Two weeks into the new year and the only blimps are if I veer away from my own findings. I find I can be most experimental with breakfast, less so at lunchtime and not at all in the evening. The evening meal sometimes is taken between 4.00pm and 6.00pm., never later and nil by mouth after, except for water.
I am at the stage were I can roughly predict what the effect of introducing anything to eat above .5 per 100 grams (half a can of baked beans...I told you so). The time is arriving when I will do a monthly blood sugar level check only. As a side effect, without trying, I have lost 6 inches from my waist and a weight loss of 3 stone. My shopping bill has dropped from £60 per week to around £18. This reduction has more than covered the cost of the self test machine. If I do occasionally relax my vigilance and dine out on curries or fish and chips with the occasional steak dinner, all with rice or chips my blood sugar level goes over the top at the post meal stage but is normal in time for the next pre meal test which I assume is what the body does best. I have found that occasionally allowing myself 40 grams of rice (uncooked) with my mid-day meal now has very little effect. I always leave some rice for the birds.
As for my method of trial and error. I jotted down what I had eaten and their approximate quantities (I do not have a great memory so jottings were essential). If the post meal reading was over the minimum then I would adjust the quantity and sugar content the next time I had the same meal. To all you fellow sufferers. Take the 'carb of which sugars' test on the packets of food and replace them with a .5 per 100 grams, or lower, substitute. Prepare to be astounded. It has taken me 3 months to arrive at this conclusion. If I had been given this advice I could have had success within a month.
This has been a life changing exercise that worked for me and may possibly work for you. In closing I would add a word of caution. Beware what friends advise you to do, they just don't have a clue. My daughter in law told me how her mother had gone from a reading of 14 down to 10 and her doctor was delighted!!!!! and that I should follow her example. She, Holford and the NHS nearly killed me, all though well intentioned, through their recommendations.
Be true to yourself. It costs nothing to check food labels...and put it back on the shelf. I personally only check carbs of which sugars (you are in for a few surprises here). This is the bayonet charge and over the top full frontal attack. Diabetes hates you to put anything back on the shelf. This tells me what is inside the packet and my meter tells me what is inside me. The meter is not a cure but it is the sharpest tool in the shed. If you want a breakdown of my meal by meal ingredients just let me know, there are not very many and one full basket does the trick. Before you ask I do not exercise as I am far too busy with art and music ( although I regard myself as a chef my kitchen time is now counted in minutes and I do use a frying pan). But please remember it is what works for you and stick with the forum ........it will sometimes tell you what not to do.
I am really looking forward to my next HB1AC test results to see if any of things I have been treated for over the last fifteen years, which in retrospect appear to coincide with increased weight and over indulgence, are also lower. This is a side effect of contentment and follows on the heels of maturity.
Best wishes to all for the new year and do let the forum know of your successes.
