Hi Nolly, just as an aside, Doctors are still using the BMI which has been shown to be complete and utter rubbish. I guess they will still push it until they are told not to.Thanks EllieM. I find it amazing that Diabetic nurses and dieticians are distributing mis-information as in (1). I am interested in LCHF but Dr. Neal Barnard of PCRM certainly makes a case for no fat, not just for treating diabetes but lots of other illnesses.
I will be interested to see what others think.
nolly53
I AM TOTALLY CONFUSED
I have been diabetic since 2002. I was told that my diabetes would progress and so it did. First Metformin then I started using insulin 7 years ago. The dosage was gradually increased.
Four years ago I read Dr David Cavan’s book “Reversing your Diabetes”. As I result I changed my eating lifestyle. As a result I halved my insulin intake overnight and lost almost 10kg in about 10 weeks. Great. Perhaps, as Dr Cavan suggests my diabetes may not be progressive after all.
However further reductions in insulin have not followed and I seemed to have plateaued.
Earlier this year my diabetic specialist prescribed Jardiance. At first I thought that this would be the answer. I started losing more weight and was able to halve my insulin intake again. However, within a month I was in hospital for the first time in 50 years with a serious urinary infection.
This has made me determined to get off insulin and diabetes medication altogether and reverse my diabetes. But how?
This is my dilemma – everywhere I look I get conflicting evidence and “advice”.
1. I could follow the Diabetes UK Healthy eating sheet given to me recently which recommends “Avoid skipping meals”, “eat pasta, easy cook rice, new potatoes”, “Cut down on fat – eat low fat or diet yoghurts”, “a small glass of fruit juice or fruit smoothie” etc.
2. In total contrast to “Avoid skipping meals”, Dr Jason Fung recommends Intermittent Fasting as a solution.
3. Dr Eric Berg recommends “carbs must be reduced. Fats can be increased”
4. Dr. Neal Barnard of PCRM tells us that it is the fat in the cells that makes them insulin resistant. “The old approach had us cutting down on carbohydrates.” “A low-fat vegetarian approach recognizes that whole-food carbohydrates are fine; it’s the fat in our diets that is the problem.”
You see my problem, and I believe the problem facing all type 2 diabetics. These recommendations are contradictory and in some cases mutually exclusive. In fact you only need to look at this website to see the abundance of diets and methods suggested.
There are probably other non-medicine solutions out there. Does it matter which one I choose? This is so important to me that I don’t want to make a bad choice. Do I have to give them all a go to find out for myself what actually works?
nolly53
For me, it's been like it has been for most of us; figure out what works for you, and stick with it. For me, I started lchf 2 years ago an recently progressed to keto. 3 Months after starting lchf I could ditch the meds (glic and a statin), and my latest HbA1c was 34 this past May. Due to foodintolerances/migraine triggers it was a bit of a puzzle, but I just took what worked for me and ditched the rest. Your meter will tell you what's right for you. (If it goes up more than 2 mmol/l 2 hours after first bite, the meal was too carby).I AM TOTALLY CONFUSED
I have been diabetic since 2002. I was told that my diabetes would progress and so it did. First Metformin then I started using insulin 7 years ago. The dosage was gradually increased.
Four years ago I read Dr David Cavan’s book “Reversing your Diabetes”. As I result I changed my eating lifestyle. As a result I halved my insulin intake overnight and lost almost 10kg in about 10 weeks. Great. Perhaps, as Dr Cavan suggests my diabetes may not be progressive after all.
However further reductions in insulin have not followed and I seemed to have plateaued.
Earlier this year my diabetic specialist prescribed Jardiance. At first I thought that this would be the answer. I started losing more weight and was able to halve my insulin intake again. However, within a month I was in hospital for the first time in 50 years with a serious urinary infection.
This has made me determined to get off insulin and diabetes medication altogether and reverse my diabetes. But how?
This is my dilemma – everywhere I look I get conflicting evidence and “advice”.
1. I could follow the Diabetes UK Healthy eating sheet given to me recently which recommends “Avoid skipping meals”, “eat pasta, easy cook rice, new potatoes”, “Cut down on fat – eat low fat or diet yoghurts”, “a small glass of fruit juice or fruit smoothie” etc.
2. In total contrast to “Avoid skipping meals”, Dr Jason Fung recommends Intermittent Fasting as a solution.
3. Dr Eric Berg recommends “carbs must be reduced. Fats can be increased”
4. Dr. Neal Barnard of PCRM tells us that it is the fat in the cells that makes them insulin resistant. “The old approach had us cutting down on carbohydrates.” “A low-fat vegetarian approach recognizes that whole-food carbohydrates are fine; it’s the fat in our diets that is the problem.”
You see my problem, and I believe the problem facing all type 2 diabetics. These recommendations are contradictory and in some cases mutually exclusive. In fact you only need to look at this website to see the abundance of diets and methods suggested.
There are probably other non-medicine solutions out there. Does it matter which one I choose? This is so important to me that I don’t want to make a bad choice. Do I have to give them all a go to find out for myself what actually works?
nolly53
@nolly53 we are all different so your treatment and needs will vary to others. What have you discovered about your own needs?I AM TOTALLY CONFUSED
I have been diabetic since 2002. I was told that my diabetes would progress and so it did. First Metformin then I started using insulin 7 years ago. The dosage was gradually increased.
Four years ago I read Dr David Cavan’s book “Reversing your Diabetes”. As I result I changed my eating lifestyle. As a result I halved my insulin intake overnight and lost almost 10kg in about 10 weeks. Great. Perhaps, as Dr Cavan suggests my diabetes may not be progressive after all.
However further reductions in insulin have not followed and I seemed to have plateaued.
Earlier this year my diabetic specialist prescribed Jardiance. At first I thought that this would be the answer. I started losing more weight and was able to halve my insulin intake again. However, within a month I was in hospital for the first time in 50 years with a serious urinary infection.
This has made me determined to get off insulin and diabetes medication altogether and reverse my diabetes. But how?
This is my dilemma – everywhere I look I get conflicting evidence and “advice”.
1. I could follow the Diabetes UK Healthy eating sheet given to me recently which recommends “Avoid skipping meals”, “eat pasta, easy cook rice, new potatoes”, “Cut down on fat – eat low fat or diet yoghurts”, “a small glass of fruit juice or fruit smoothie” etc.
2. In total contrast to “Avoid skipping meals”, Dr Jason Fung recommends Intermittent Fasting as a solution.
3. Dr Eric Berg recommends “carbs must be reduced. Fats can be increased”
4. Dr. Neal Barnard of PCRM tells us that it is the fat in the cells that makes them insulin resistant. “The old approach had us cutting down on carbohydrates.” “A low-fat vegetarian approach recognizes that whole-food carbohydrates are fine; it’s the fat in our diets that is the problem.”
You see my problem, and I believe the problem facing all type 2 diabetics. These recommendations are contradictory and in some cases mutually exclusive. In fact you only need to look at this website to see the abundance of diets and methods suggested.
There are probably other non-medicine solutions out there. Does it matter which one I choose? This is so important to me that I don’t want to make a bad choice. Do I have to give them all a go to find out for myself what actually works?
nolly53
I know, I had his book too!Very interesting that you were vegetarian when diagnosed with diabetes. (This goes against Dr. Neal Barnard's teaching.)
I agree with you about Jardiance. I certainly would never consider taking it again.
nolly53
You have just told my story. I ate all the healthy (Or so I thought) foods and put weight on and was diagnosed with sugars being to high _Pre Diabetic. Now I eat low carb high fat and sugars have come down and I have lost weightI am a T2 (diet controlled) in my own personal experience as a vegetarian from birth - approach 4 didnt work! I followed a low fat, high fiber vegetarian (vegan for many years). I ate lots of fruit and veg, filled up on higher fiber carbs such as brown rice, wholegrain pasta porridge etc, refused to eat anything that was more than 5% fat. I still became T2.
After I was diagnosed the NHS dietitian said I was following a "perfect diet" and should continue. GP just told me I was going to take metformin.
I refused the meds , bought my own meter and started to test how my body reacted tot he foods I ate. I was shocked at how high the spoke was after my "healthy porridge made with skimmed milk", the horror of the spike after my low fat wholewheat veggie lasagne.
After reading lots of the info on this forum, and continued testing with my meter it was very evident that the low carb approach worked for me. It did take me a long time to overcome my fear (years of brainwashing) of low fat.
I now eat a vegetarian low carb healthy fat diet. My blood glucose levels are controlled, I have no diabetic complications, I have never needed any medication (other than a multivitamin to ensure I get enough B12 and iron) my cholesterol levels are normal (lowish). My only "problem" is not loosing too much weight each week - yes really!! despite eating cheese, clotted cream, chocolate etc every week.
This approach works for me, we are all individuals, the only way I found what worked for me was to test, test test, I still test but dont get too worried about small changes. (I have discovered that my BG levels follow hormonal changes (monthly cyces and ovulation) and are raised a few days before I come down with a cold/virus etc.
Have a good look around the forum, have a look at the dietdoctor website for great low carb ideas (there are pictures on the site for lower carb choices - so useful!)
Keep asking for help
I AM TOTALLY CONFUSED
I have been diabetic since 2002. I was told that my diabetes would progress and so it did. First Metformin then I started using insulin 7 years ago. The dosage was gradually increased.
Four years ago I read Dr David Cavan’s book “Reversing your Diabetes”. As I result I changed my eating lifestyle. As a result I halved my insulin intake overnight and lost almost 10kg in about 10 weeks. Great. Perhaps, as Dr Cavan suggests my diabetes may not be progressive after all.
However further reductions in insulin have not followed and I seemed to have plateaued.
Earlier this year my diabetic specialist prescribed Jardiance. At first I thought that this would be the answer. I started losing more weight and was able to halve my insulin intake again. However, within a month I was in hospital for the first time in 50 years with a serious urinary infection.
This has made me determined to get off insulin and diabetes medication altogether and reverse my diabetes. But how?
This is my dilemma – everywhere I look I get conflicting evidence and “advice”.
1. I could follow the Diabetes UK Healthy eating sheet given to me recently which recommends “Avoid skipping meals”, “eat pasta, easy cook rice, new potatoes”, “Cut down on fat – eat low fat or diet yoghurts”, “a small glass of fruit juice or fruit smoothie” etc.
2. In total contrast to “Avoid skipping meals”, Dr Jason Fung recommends Intermittent Fasting as a solution.
3. Dr Eric Berg recommends “carbs must be reduced. Fats can be increased”
4. Dr. Neal Barnard of PCRM tells us that it is the fat in the cells that makes them insulin resistant. “The old approach had us cutting down on carbohydrates.” “A low-fat vegetarian approach recognizes that whole-food carbohydrates are fine; it’s the fat in our diets that is the problem.”
You see my problem, and I believe the problem facing all type 2 diabetics. These recommendations are contradictory and in some cases mutually exclusive. In fact you only need to look at this website to see the abundance of diets and methods suggested.
There are probably other non-medicine solutions out there. Does it matter which one I choose? This is so important to me that I don’t want to make a bad choice. Do I have to give them all a go to find out for myself what actually works?
nolly53
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