LOW CARB SUCCESS STORIES

[PNJB]

As my closest friends will know, the last 5 years have been a continuity of failing health resulting in Diabetes,High Blood pressure, Oedema and diabetic complications requiring large quantities of medicaments , which necessarily did not work in my favour as they promoted weight increase.Each year diabetic sufferers undergoa blood test to determine how well or badly they are progressing.

With a BMI 0f 40.1, BP typically in the 155 /100 range, hi risk of heart attack from excess strain on the heart, swollen legs and ankles from Oedema, macular retinopathy, and peripheral pneuropathy and Blood Sugar spiking in the 16's range. The WHO (2011) recommend 48 mmol/mol as the diagnostic cut off for Type 2 Diabetes.

My current reading is 33mmol/mol !!!!!
My Blood Sugar is at 5.7 instead of 16
My BP is now typically 111/85 instead of 156/135
My feet and legs have lost the swollen effect of Oedema
My Cholesterol is now 3.7

All of the above improvement is attributable to a Low Carb diet of less than 20 carbs a day, increasing my fats and proteins to compensate for the lack of carbs.

16/08/2016
Haemoglobin A1C (IFCC) 33 mmol/m
Serum Cholesterol Level (XE2eD) 3.7 mmol/L
Serum HDL Cholesterol Level (44P5) 0.90 mmol/L
Serum Cholesterol/HDL Ratio (XaEUq) 4.1
Serum Trigliceride Levels (XE2q9) 1.29 mmol/L
Serum LDL Cholesterol Level (44P6) 2.07mmol/L
Serum Non Hi Density Cholesterol (XabE1) 2.80 mmol/L
Serum Albumin Level (Xe2eA) 38 g/L
Serum total bilirubin Level (XaERu) 11 umol/L
Serum Alkaline Phosphase Level (XE2x) 62 U/L
Serum Alanine Aminotransferase (xaLJx) 42. U/L
Serum TSH Level (XaELV) 5 mU/L
Serum Free T4 Level (XaERr) 11.9 pmol/L
Serum Sodium Level (Xe2q0) 141 mmol/L
Serum Potassium (XE2pz) 4.4 mmol/L
Serum Creatinine (XE2q5) 77 umol/L
MDRD GFR 89 mL/min

Just wanna say! "I'm BACK!"

 

[Prem51]

Great results @PNJB! Well done!

 

[mollykins]

Re: Success stories

Started on lower carbs in June 2007 since when I have lost 18kg( from 107 to 89; 3 dress sizes down too) and stopped taking gliclazide. I still have an occasional Starlix 60, if I do a Bg and find I'm over 6 and it's earlier than bed time. At bedtime, I'll accept a 6 and know it's likely to go down to target of 5.5 by morning. Still taking metformin.
Find that any more than a few grams of carbs puts me over target. eg. Had 2 matzo crakers with butter!! with a boiled egg for lunch 5.4g of carbs. Won't test, because being mean with my store of strips. Will find out at bedtime. I'm testing once daily,
Despite knowing i am seriously overweight, Couldn't stick to the low fat/ highcarb Healthy Eating plan for more than a week or so at a time. Have kept up low carb for 14 months.
Last Hb A1c was 6.1% HDL 1.6 LDL1.4. That was Feb. they say i need to be done only once a year, because I'm stable. Retinopahy is stable too, slight and hasn't changed. In fact my appointments are what keeps changing.
forgot to put
Diagnosed T2 in July 2003 following a stroke. Followed what little dietary advice I got from the hospital dietician for the first 4 years.

well done hanadr very impressive I am new to this site, you have sorted things out well.

 

[mollykins]

Hi everyone,

I was diagnosed Type 2 4 years ago and advised to follow a high carb low fat diet by my GP. I put on a lot of weight and had constant high levels ranging between 16mmols and 16mmols. Felt ill all the time.

Although i dont post a lot on the forums i have been reading them a lot! I started to follow the LCHF diet on Monday utilizing all the advice and recipes here. I am pleased to report that as of yesterday my BGL is now 6.2mmols 2 hours after food.....i have lost 8lbs!

I was on 20mg of high bp medication and had to call the GP this morning to request 10mg as my BP was too low!!

I will be continuing on this new healthy path! I wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone here for the guidance and recipes....i could not have done this without you. I will post updates Thank you guys so much!!!

well done Nurse Dee you have given me hope I must try the low carbs diet I have been all over the place .Thank you and gl.

 

[Jamrox]

Hi glad you are still here , I've still reduced my carbs but going off the rails so reading your posts are helping me to get back on track, day 1 starts now.

 

[PNJB]

Being a self confessed "Info-Nerd", one of the best ways to keep myself motivated is to identify to myself the variety of ways in which I can see how effective my lo-carb diet has been. To this end, since starting my lo carb diet on May 15th 2016, I am now 12.2 % bodyweight less. Instead of 296.3lbs, I am now 264lbs, My BMI originated at 40.1 is now 34.8 and I have reduced from 134kg down to 119.8kg. Everybody needs motivating at times, but the best motivation comes from within. This method helps me to keep on track and I hope it is positive guidance for others.

 

[PNJB]

Having previously reported my excellent Hb1Ac results on this thread, I am just back from reviewing the results with my GP, with the result that he now feels confident in me not taking my weight increasing Gliclazide. Wahaaay!!! Further he wants to give me another Hb1Ac in 3 months, which if the results support it, he will reduce or remove my Sitagliptin, and possibly even adjust my BP medication further! Some days just feel right!

 

[connie104]

Having previously reported my excellent Hb1Ac results on this thread, I am just back from reviewing the results with my GP, with the result that he now feels confident in me not taking my weight increasing Gliclazide. Wahaaay!!! Further he wants to give me another Hb1Ac in 3 months, which if the results support it, he will reduce or remove my Sitagliptin, and possibly even adjust my BP medication further! Some days just feel right!

Well done!!! It's a great feeling to feel your winning the fight . I had a very similar appointment with my doctor last week and he took me off vildagliptin as my blood tests have been in the non diabetic range for some time. Like you another blood test in 3 months to make sure all is going well.

 

[ickihun]

My recent success on low carb diet is :-

I've been able to reduce my levothyroxine from 200mg to 100mg. The heart palpatations on lchf might have been from too much levothyroxine. It will be confirmed in 3-6mths time by bloodtest.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
Still no statins either. I'm fighting them off as I am borderline too high for a diabetic.
Suffering with pelvic joint inflammation so exercise is very very painful but I'm working on it.

 

[ickihun]

As my closest friends will know, the last 5 years have been a continuity of failing health resulting in Diabetes,High Blood pressure, Oedema and diabetic complications requiring large quantities of medicaments , which necessarily did not work in my favour as they promoted weight increase.Each year diabetic sufferers undergoa blood test to determine how well or badly they are progressing.

With a BMI 0f 40.1, BP typically in the 155 /100 range, hi risk of heart attack from excess strain on the heart, swollen legs and ankles from Oedema, macular retinopathy, and peripheral pneuropathy and Blood Sugar spiking in the 16's range. The WHO (2011) recommend 48 mmol/mol as the diagnostic cut off for Type 2 Diabetes.

My current reading is 33mmol/mol !!!!!
My Blood Sugar is at 5.7 instead of 16
My BP is now typically 111/85 instead of 156/135
My feet and legs have lost the swollen effect of Oedema
My Cholesterol is now 3.7

All of the above improvement is attributable to a Low Carb diet of less than 20 carbs a day, increasing my fats and proteins to compensate for the lack of carbs.

16/08/2016
Haemoglobin A1C (IFCC) 33 mmol/m
Serum Cholesterol Level (XE2eD) 3.7 mmol/L
Serum HDL Cholesterol Level (44P5) 0.90 mmol/L
Serum Cholesterol/HDL Ratio (XaEUq) 4.1
Serum Trigliceride Levels (XE2q9) 1.29 mmol/L
Serum LDL Cholesterol Level (44P6) 2.07mmol/L
Serum Non Hi Density Cholesterol (XabE1) 2.80 mmol/L
Serum Albumin Level (Xe2eA) 38 g/L
Serum total bilirubin Level (XaERu) 11 umol/L
Serum Alkaline Phosphase Level (XE2x) 62 U/L
Serum Alanine Aminotransferase (xaLJx) 42. U/L
Serum TSH Level (XaELV) 5 mU/L
Serum Free T4 Level (XaERr) 11.9 pmol/L
Serum Sodium Level (Xe2q0) 141 mmol/L
Serum Potassium (XE2pz) 4.4 mmol/L
Serum Creatinine (XE2q5) 77 umol/L
MDRD GFR 89 mL/min

Just wanna say! "I'm BACK!"

Well done. I'm very impressed.
Thank god for these forums!!!

 

[PNJB]

So chuffed with my current success as a "Lo Carber", and having been logging my results in a spreadsheet since the start of this venture, I achieved 119 kg exactly on the scales this morning exactly as i predicted to myself 6 weeks ago. I am fascinated with forward projection of improvements, and so have used the "Intercept" function of Excel to predict future milestones to see if I can.(possibly making myself look an idiot), I predict my current weight will be 118 kg on 21/9/2016, 117 kg on 3/10/2016 and 116kg on 15/10/2016 (and just for the hell of it, I have predicted I will be 109kg on 3/01/2017) If this all pans out as I hope, maybe it will be a basis for others to predict their progress, If not, I will look a chump! Either way, I will report progress back here as it happens.

 

[JoeBul]

Hi, I've only just registered with this site, but have been following it since May 2015.

I'm a 63yr old type 2 diabetic first diagnosed in 2007. I've had a weight problem since puberty, by the age of 18 I weighed 120Kg. I managed to come down to 95Kg by standard calorie restriction over six months but have yoyo-ing in weight ever since so that by 2015 my weight was 106Kg and my HbA1c had reached 91. Until this point my medication consisted of Metformin SR and Plioglitazone as well as other medications for hypertension. My doctor made it clear that I needed to change my medication to include either a Sulfonylurea or SGLT2 inhibitor. He also outlined the considerable side effects I may encounter with them.

Fortunately, my doctor encouraged me to look for more information on-line regarding the use of these drugs and I found diabetes.co.uk and came across Dr David Cavan's book "Reverse your Diabetes". In his book he suggests keeping a food diary with an app called Carbs & Cals and restricting the carbohydrate intake to 100g per day. With previous attempts at dieting I kept on hitting the 'hunger wall'. I would often find myself ravenous and cave in. After the famine came the feast and my weight loss was wiped out and more gained. With this carb restricted diet I found I could happily reduce my calorie intake to 2000 per day. From June 2015 to May 2016 my weight reduced steadily from 106Kg to 76Kg and my HbA1c progressively reduced to 33. I have been able to stop using the Plioglitazone and Metformin altogether. I am now increasing my calorie intake to 2300 per day but retaining the daily carb limit of 100g. I now have a BMI below 25 for the first time in my adult life!

Needless to say both my doctor and myself are delighted with the progress I've made. It's now obvious to me that carbs interfere with the hunger and satiety hormones causing me to overeat. I knew before that I had to reduce, indeed avoid sugary foods, but I hadn't really appreciated how detrimental the starchy foods were to my metabolism. It does mean the I eat far more fats than previously and avoid most breads, pasta, pizza, rice and potato. However, I've not had serious cravings for these foods nor has this been detrimental to my Cholesterol levels. Quite the contrary, I have total Cholesterol 3.5, LDL 1.7 and HDL 1.4.

I share my story in the hope that it may be helpful to others who like myself have always been overweight/obese and have gone on to develop diabetes. In my own case I've successfully reversed my diabetes by following Dr Cavan's advice. Looking at the posts on this site I can see that we all possess differing metabolisms, so that some need a more severe carb restriction than I have needed. Others, may find that this approach doesn't work for them. However, the LCHF is certainly well worth experimenting with.

 

[Prem51]

@JoeBul Thanks for posting that! Well done on your hard work in reducing your weight and HbA1c. It's always good to read success stories!

 

[_lyn_lyn_1963]

Great post fergus so many successes with low carb and people losing their weight and feeling so much better. Inspiring stories.think the low fat thing they had my mum on was not the way to go.

 

[adriangoatseye]

Hi all

Haven't been on here for two or three months but today got the most wonderful news that I had - after reading abut the Newcastle Diet and then coming on here and reading all about LCHF - managed to reverse the diabetes effect. In January of this year a pre-op blood test had me at HbA1 of 51 while my weight was 15st 3lbs. I felt slow, lethargic and struggled to bother with things. When I received a phone call about my high blood sugar level it took me about 30 seconds to decide that I was going to resist delivering my young daughters a dad who was going to be constantly ill before dying prematurely of diabetes. I started that very instant by throwing all my chocolate in the bin (yes 1 minute after the call my chocolate was gone). And so it started. I went to a simple meat and 2 veg diet that I grew up on. A coupe of weeks later I was down 4lbs to 14st 13lbs. Just getting below 15st gave me impetus. Then I stumbled across a place that would revolutionise my life. That place ladies and gentlemen was here. The LCHF. I was a little nervous about the idea of eating more fat but thought I'd give it a go. A week later I was down to 14st 9lbs. I was astounded. I persisted with an approach of LCHF coupled with carefully measured calories. By the time I went to see the diabetic nurse I was down to 14st 5lbs. That meeting was possibly one of the most depressing meetings ever. There seemed to be total disregard when I mentioned the Newcastle Diet and LCHF. It was merely 'well you can try such things and I do have one or two patients who control things through diet' and then back to explaining more about 'my' medication. I came out thinking that maybe medication was inevitable (maybe it still will be at some point). However, my sheer bloody minded side came out and I persisted again. I eventually went for the second blood test in March and prayed that I had done enough to be below 48. After an age of waiting it came back as OK. I was elated but people on here advised me to get the actual figures. When I did my HbA1c was 47. I was still only just below diabetic and although I had - by the skin of my teeth - avoided an actual diagnosis there was more to be done. I pressed on and on, boring everyone around me with my constant dietary advice. I learned loads about calories and foods etc etc and most of all I learned to read tins and packets and ignore anything with above more than a smattering of sugar in it. The weight continued to drop. I remember getting excited when I tipped into the 13st 13lbs level. It only seemed a short while when I neared my original target of 13st (I am 6' 4" if anyone is wondering). I reached and went into the twelves. I wondered how far I could take this. However, there was part of me that wondered if I had to eat quite so puritanically. By then I was feeling way better than I had done for a long while. I decided to start adding things like potatoes, rice, pasta and - dare I say - crisps back in. I decided to do this for three months before getting another blood test. The upshot was that today I received the results of that test and I had an HbA1c of 40. Below pre-diabetic. In addition to getting this level back down I can honestly say that I feel good. I play games and go swimming etc with my young daughters when a year ago I struggled to bother with their energy. It's great. Although I have achieved this I remain alive to where I was before. I regularly check my weight and make sure I try to stay between 12st 4lb and 12st 9lbs (yes I got down to that low). I eat a varied diet that does include those dreaded carbs but I also avoid sugar with just odd exceptions. I am no longer 'on a diet' I am now eating a 'different diet'. If my weight goes up again or I start to feel sluggish or slow I will simply revert to a more puritanical version of LCHF.

I would like to say thanks to all those that gave me good bits of advice and shared a few jokes on here as well. To anyone new that is reading this my advice is get cracking on LCHF with immediate effect. Know your target weight and don't waiver from getting there for a second. Enjoy foods that you may have seen as boring for a while now (such as the humble tomato). When you get there you may find your life has been revolutionised, improved and, more importantly preserved. I wish you all the best on your journey.

 

[Prem51]

Hi @adriangoatseye! Good to hear from you again, and even better to read of your excellent HbA1c and weight reductions with LCHF. It's always great to hear success stories and an inspiration and encouragement to everyone.

 

[PNJB]

Brilliant results and highly motivating.!

 

[nomoredonuts]

Top effort @adriangoatseye, you are a good example that adapting the lchf programme can still give results and finding something you can live with is as important as achieving a 'number'. Have a pat on the back.

 

[adriangoatseye]

Top effort @adriangoatseye, you are a good example that adapting the lchf programme can still give results and finding something you can live with is as important as achieving a 'number'. Have a pat on the back.

Thanks. If just one person reads my posts and changes their life it is good. I can't tell you whose post I read to reach the LCHF part of the forum but they are worth their weight in gold because it revolutionised my life. I have a real zest for life now and a real awareness of how food intake affects me. I'm quite fascinated by the subject. Other tips I picked up were using cinnamon to help with blood sugar control and turmeric is great as well. Since picking up those tips I have seen programmes where scientists have run experiments to show that cinnamon helps control sugar into blood and turmeric (if cooked with) changes you at molecular structure to fight against cancer, depression and asthma. I put them both in warm milk every day. I quite like the taste as well.

 

[PNJB]

On 15th May 2016, I started a “Lo Carb-Hi Fat” eating regime.
In the following 97 days, my BP and Blood sugar have “normalised”.

Today I weigh 5.8 BMI less, being 15.2% of my original bodyweight, and represents a reduction of 3 Stone less to carry around.

My New Year resolution is to continue this regime through to 15th May 2017 to see what can be achieved!