My 'Newcastle' Experiment.....

HDL_ME

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This isn't going to be too lengthy a posting, I hope... but I just wanted to let anyone know.... who is interested in attempting to gain better control of their diabetic and cholesterol bits n' doings... how I've managed a great result by having a go at an 8 week diet of 600 cals a day.

It's funny how life works sometimes because coming back from a holiday in Egypt in January, I sat next to a lady who used to work for the UN. She told me about an unfortunate lady who got kidnapped and held captive in the Egyptian Desert somewhere...for weeks and weeks...& because she didn't have her medication with her for most of that time, when she was 'rescued'/released, she'd lost her Diabetes!
I thought...I'd like some of that!...(though not the kidnapping-bit)

So, I was kind of 'primed' as it were for when I heard about the results of the Newcastle University research a couple of months ago...& I thought... 'I'm def. going to give that a Go!'
Now I thought it would be good to speak to my Doctor first, see what she had to say...though I had already decided I was going ahead with the diet, anyway. But after enquiring about making an Appointment to see her, I learnt that she had just gone on a 2 week holiday.That was literally just a few hours after I'd read about the Newcastle diet.
Having my Moon in Aries, I was not inclined to hang-around too much & so decided that I was going-ahead with the diet..starting 'tomorrow'...ie Friday 24th June. I downloaded the pdf file off the internet, to read all about the details of the experiment & then I spent a good bit of time online on the Thursday pm reading about what essential amounts of protein one requires per day and the protein profiles of a variety of foods that I might be able to eat under my 600 a day regime. Being a Vegetarian, I already eat Quorn in various forms & I could continue with quite a few types of that...though some were too caloric to be included. But it was clear that if I was going to eat enough protein & not have to go to a lot of hassle on the diet, I would have to put my vegetarian qualms aside & go for the cold chicken breast...as well as Quorn 'Ham' products... with the umpteen Salads that I knew would take over my Eating Life.
So I kind of planned-out what I might eat during a dieting day.... to see just how feasible it was to do the diet without having to centre it around just 3 milk shakes a day. I knew that I couldn't possibly cope with just 3 glasses of milky-something & a pile of vedg. everyday. People on the Newcastle experiment did ...but they had all the encouragement of the Research Team & all that monitoring malarky to keep them on the ball. I just had Me and a very supportive and understanding Friend!
But, being a Cancerian & having an excellent Intuition, I 'knew' that I could do it and that it was all worth doing. I already had an excellent Vitamin & Mineral Supplement each day and an effective Probiotic capsule with my brekkie, so I was not really worried about what I was doing. I was a little concerned that I might need the assistance of some kind of Dietary drink to get through my 600 cal-day on some occasions & thought that I'd write a note to my doctor to see if she might be able to help me by prescribing some 'Optifast' to incorporate into my diet. But by the time she was back from Hol. & I'd spoken to her & found out that it wasn't really going to be possible to have that option without being on an Official monitored Diet-type thing...which I did not want, I'd got so used to what I was having in my Diet anyway, I just carried on the same as I had started, without.

Anyway, without boring you all to bits...I kept to the 600 cals a day ...every day...save one...my birthday...when I had 733 cals, to include a bit of Sherry Trifle and a piece of Cream cake with fresh raspberries for my 62nd Birthday Tea!

My best Dieting tip...to make sure that you have at least one Indulgence a day incorporated into your diet. Mine was a bag of Walkers French Fries 'Worcester Sauce' Flavour....I had these sometimes for breakfast or if I could summon-up the willpower, I'd pour the packet full into a Lock & Lock container & eat them in little batches over the day.
But the thing is in all this... I have very poor willpower, you see. That's why I ended-up with Diabetes in the first place....I eat when I'm upset/worried/tired/anxious etc etc.
My sun sign of 'Cancer' is the most Emotional of the Water signs & astrologically I have everything in Anxiety & Worry...believe me!! Will Power is NOT one of my Personal Assets, please be assured on that front. When I was diagnosed with Diabetes early in 2005, I was over 16 stone. Upon diagnosis, I decided that the eating had to stop in order to get things under some kind of control & I lost some stones of weight...gradually.
But for years, I've coped with eating many of things I liked to eat...cream cakes, crisps, Snicker Bars etc etc...with the assistance of 3 Metformin a day ...and a Lisinopril pill at night, to cope with the high blood pressure the crisps et al had helped me develop!

But I thought that with my vision definetly on a downward drift, with the hearing loss in my left ear getting gradually worse (having Tinnitus in both ears now, in order not to lie awake thinking of all my anxieties as I listen to all that swishing noise going-on in my ears, I have an earphone in all night very quietly giving me 'Radio Five, Live' ...that helps me get to sleep past the Tinnitus noise) & knowing that a degree of mental fuzziness was getting progressively worse along with all the damaging symptoms of Diabetes...I was losing my Freedom.
I'd always thought that the freedom to eat what I liked, was the important one. The freedom to please myself with a culinary indulgence or bar of chocolate..(or should that be a second bar of chocolate...sometimes, most definetly 'Yes!')But I had had enough being bossed around by the Diabetes thing...by being stuck on Pills that will certainly have some detrimental effect on my constitution, despite the fact that they are helping to guard me from the even worse ones of Type 2 Diabetes, not treated or controlled. I decided that I'd had a Lifetime of eating what I wanted. I'd done the Crisps and Chocolate and Everything-Else Fattening routine for Decades & had had a Bumper Time without any real input of the need to say "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH" You've had a Lifetime of allowing the Excess...now it's time to say 'No' for 8 weeks and give this Diet a Go!

Anyway, I went to the Doctor's surgery today to collect the results of the HBA1C & Lipids tests that the phlobotomist had taken on Monday morning.
I had stopped taking Metformin the day before I started on the diet...my last dose was with my Tea on the Thursday night. I have not had a Metformin since then.
My glucose tests in the morning were all below 5, after a week on the diet...and are typically 4.5 now before I go to bed & before Breakfast in the morning.
I started at 12 stone 5Ibs on Day One and ended-up at 10 stone 10 Ibs after the 8 weeks...a loss of I stone and 12 pounds....& having re-organised my Diet and attitude to life. I feel so much better, my clothes are so much comfier to wear...& a good deal smaller! Above all, the fuzziness that had been assaulting my mind has cleared.....yes, I still am forgetful but feel so much Brighter in myself.
My Cholesterol is now on my Medical Records as Normal ... whereas before, at diagnosis, my Cholesterol was just under 10! (My Doctor at that particular time...commented that she rarely got one quite so high as that?!)
And most wonderful of all...my HBA1c is now recorded as a 'Normal'-type one...a Fandabidozee 5.5!
'Whey-Hey' is all I can say to that!

All the Best to you,
Julie
 
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bowell

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Your finger must be sore with all that typing :D


Dont be fooled you may have only held it back you will need to keep close eye on your diet

Few on the study went back onto meds soon after

Some are still Med free with a controlled healthy diet


otherwise well done
 
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HDL_ME

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Hi there,
I don't believe that I've lost the diabetes yet....firstly, because most of the successful dieters in the Newcastle group lost between 15% to 20% of their starting weight... I need another 3 pounds off just to get my loss to 15%.....so more work is required. Also, I realise that life is a series of compromises ...& I've now accepted that I'm willing to adopt a restricted diet in order not to have to compromise any more with my health. So a controlled diet will be a fact of life for me....though I believe that Time may well be kind over the long term and I may well lose the Diabetes eventually.

The 8 week diet was tough...particularly at the beginning. No bread, no cake, no biscuits, no fruit, none of my fave 'sausage sandwiches!' My meals had just a 1st Course...no Puddings...& I felt so tired during the first week. Not eating anything much with 'sweetness' in it was so hard. But, I'd found out that Maynards Sport Mixtures cut into two, meant that I could have something sweet for just 7 cals & so my meals ended with one or two of those...or one Rolo, if I had enough cals that day.

But I got used to it ...and the idea of continuing now with a diet of about 800 cals until I lose that bit more weight, isn't now too tough an Ask...as unlike those on the Newcastle experiment, I am NOT going to put some of the weight lost back on. I have not given up my sweets, cakes, crisps, sandwiches & tried my hardest with this blooming Diet...just to have to lose the fat sometime again in the future! I am under no illusions at all about the challenge ahead for the rest of my life, if necessary....I shall have to eat less from now on & carry on doing just that. But I genuinely believe that I've come to terms with the choices I have in front of me. I love feeling better in my clothes, not have to buy Oversized stuff...(if I can get it anyway!) I love having a Triglyceride reading of 1.0... and a HDL of 4.4.
I refused the statins to control my cholesterol anyway, as intuitively I didn't feel happy with taking them (I tried them twice, didn't like the effects on my muscles and my eyes and came off them twice...) so it is just great to have my cholesterol in control without them.

The diet really wasn't half bad...I had a lot of the right stuff to eat everyday & I had choices what I wanted to do with my 600 cals every single day...I felt in control. I could not have done it though if I had conceeded that control to the Doctor....even though my Doctor is great and she gave me her support and interest in all that I was attempting. I wanted to pick the foodstuff and take control of the whole thing, as I would have to continue with just my self-control after the 8 weeks were over.

I just cannot say how very chuffed I was to have got a Normal rating on my Medical Records for what was a dreadfull set of cholesterol readings last time I had them done...and for a HBA1C that was nowhere near normal, before. I really think that Diabetes can be beaten by diet for those that might not have had it for too long.... & its such an exciting thing that maybe now, when someone is given that horrid news that they are diagnosed with Type 2...it is not necessarily a Done Thing...you can possibly beat that diagnosis & turn things round...if you have the will.
 

baggers

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I am interested in your results, since I started the diet on 1st August. I have now lost a stone in weight. I am not greatly overweight, and cannot say that I yet feel so much different or better, but I hope that at the end of the eight weeks I will have lost 2 and a half stone and can go off the tablets. I have not found the exercise too difficult yet - I am a great believer that you can do anything with willpower. I have also not yet stopped taking the tablets but intend to do so gradually. As a matter of interest my readings since I went on the diet have stabilised at 3-4 taken each evening before bed. Because they are so low I am reasonably confident I can leave off the tablets without harm. I will let you know how I go on over time.
 

bowell

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Its just some like you have Not stuck to the Org Newcastle study diet , With the Aim to shift the fat around your liver and pancreas first to re start things off and
try to copy the results findings from weight loss surgery
Using meal replacement drinks Pre and post op

How do you know you have removed that fat first ? or just managed the weight loss ?

A low cal Aktins type diet would have given you similar results ,
but when you start to eat anything with sugar in BG will go up higher than non diabetic
Question Now is would you now pass the FBG test would you pass Like the Newcastle study :?:
or fail like a T2 diabetic ?

I was on meds my last Hb1c was 5.5 ? still im not normal :roll:

I am sticking to the Newcastle program to the letter already off all Meds by week one with FBG 5<>6 i also lost 7lbs in a week much like the study

Anyone trying this I would advise that you to stick as close as poss to the study and give it the best poss chance of working ,,OR to me thats a lot of work and effort and not much chance to copy the results :cry:
If you make your own diet up its NOT the Newcastle diet .
At best its a good weight loss diet No guarantee you have a chance to remove the fat from around your liver and pancreas to start things up again

Most of the information you need is here to download
inc doc notes the Newcatle diet plan ect
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/diabetes-forum/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=23135

Read all you can make your own mind up try and get your doctor on your side

Not trying to get at you But to say what you have done is the Newcastle Diet is stretching it a bit

Well done for the weight loss and your BG levels Ask your GP for a FBG Test
 

HDL_ME

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Preview: Re: My 'Newcastle' Experiment.....
Good to hear about your diet, baggers.
My immediate thoughts are that maybe readings between 3 and 4 might be classed as a little low, to have consistently.... perhaps caused by the fact that you are very seriously dieting and taking pills as well? But, I'm no expert on such matters...& am not qualified to comment.
But for me the whole thing was to leave off the pills & thereby, like riding a bike or managing to swim for the first time, you make that leap of faith that helps you say 'I mean to beat this!'
That was my approach after having read all the details about the diet experiment and by being convinced within my own mind, that the whole thing can and will work. I had no doubts whatsoever about leaving off the pills, as at any time I could cease the diet and start taking the pills again, if required.
It will only be settled in my case though by the passage of Time. The people who took part in the Newcastle experiment had only had the condition for less than 4 years...I've had it for about 7 years at least I think, as I believe I had it for a good while before being fully diagnosed.
As you will know, the whole point of the exercise is to use up the fatty deposits in the Pancreas and Liver via the action of a crash-type diet...that stop the organs from producing insulin. I don't yet know whether or not I will/can get a sufficient function back now in that regard....that's something I'll find out in the future. All I know is that I've already got back a whole lot more 'function' than I had 2 months ago...my levels don't go so high and recover and stabilise better. That in itself is great....and worth keeping control for, to my mind.
Anyway, I shall look out for your postings to see how you go...and Good Luck!
Oh yes, one more thing...the second month was much slower on the weight loss, so do bear that in mind, expectation-wise. The body gets used to the low cal intake & I have been amazed at what one can do on only 600 calories! Until I get back a sufficient function in the Pancreas, it will mean a future of very careful eating but I'm resigned to that....and I think the balance of gain and loss is in my favour. Because I feel brighter in my self and in my mind, I've registered to complete a BA Honours degree with the OU in October that I'd given up on, many years ago!
 
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HDL_ME

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I would just like to clarify a few things in what is my last post to this forum/website. For those people who are considering having a go at a restricted Newcastle-type diet of 600 cals for 8 weeks...I would say...do consider giving it a try if you feel that it is appropriate to your circumstances & is medically advisable. I cannot emphasise enough how great it is to at least almost ditch the diabetes & to have all the other benefits, that can make you feel brighter about yourself. I really have won back my self-respect in dietary terms.... after spending so much of my adult life reluctantly... but still willingly ....embracing the calorie!
Make no mistake, my diet was rigorously adhered-to even though my 600 cals came not from milky drinks but from more conventional meals of protein products, carefully-chosen and weighed.. and served with vegetables for a bit of bulk as well as their intrinsic food quality. Like I'm sure many other folks feel, I know that basically having just 3 drinks of something is quite beyond my powers of endurance each day. But a plate full of salad with slices of Chicken breast was more than acceptable. But its calorie content has to be very strictly & carefully assessed and recorded in a list each day...so that one is not writing those cals down 'creatively' or leaving the odd few off each days list. I made use of the excellent websites online that give you the full calorie count of small quantities of food as well as its nutient content.
Being able to design your own diet, gives you some flexibility as to what you can eat each day.
Yes, its the same old stuff...salads with chicken breast or Quorn products (its important to have enough protein every day) or vedg. casserole with Quorn stuff...I used about 5 different products, alternating with each other for a 'change'...though of course its pretty well the same old mushroom protein in a different shape! But really, once you accept that you have to ditch the Pudding element of the meal...(that was my toughest 'ask' of all)...or have it way after your body (without pills to assist..) has dealt with the glucose created by the 1st course...you can still feel 'in control' of what you are eating. It's your diet...its you that are taking an active control of what happens & its all your good efforts when you succeed.
My doctor arranged my blood tests at the Surgery to give me my HBA1C & cholesterol readings at the 8 weeks stage of my diet & was both enthusiastic & fully supportive of what I was attempting to do...& like me, was dying to know how I'd get on....though I think its fair to say that a reading of 5.5 was better than either of us were hoping-for. I expected about 6.2 maybe....
But just a reading of 5.5 does not mean the disease has departed....just that basically, its well-controlled. I've got a few more pounds to lose still, as I need to take the opportunity to try to dump Diabetes for good.
Yesterday for the first time, I had a celebratory meal of 2 courses, together....no Metformin pills of course...a big salad with extra Tikka chicken, some grapes and apple added, followed by a modest portion of sherry trifle (the type with cream on the top from the Coop!) I went up to 9.1 but in remarkably short time, I was back at 4.6. I was dead chuffed at that. No, the diabetes has not gone yet...not until every reading is under about 7.8, irrespective...that is my definition that I'm sticking-to ... but I'm quite happy with carrying-on with most of my readings being under 7.8 anyway, with controlled consumption, till I've lost that extra bit of weight that will give me the chance to hopefully lose the Type 2 for good.
I'm now down to 10 stone, 8 and a half pounds, so have just a few more pounds to go before I will know how the land lies, as t'were. Apart from yesterdays little treat to celebrate my success so far....I'm still sticking to the strict diet for a little bit longer. I lost loads of weight in the first week or so...just over 7 pounds in week one but by the time week seven arrives, that rapid weight loss has ground to a much slower one. Also, one loses fat off the areas that you'd rather not do so...the face and neck ....& so 'lines' appear where there weren't any visible before! But at Asda yesterday, I bought a couple of pairs of jeans that I wouldn't have even got the two pieces of the zip to physically meet before, let alone do up comfortably with some room to spare....on the 23rd of June before I began the diet.
Really, the time has gone quickly...it has all been worth-it...whether I get to lose the diabetes fully or not. Maybe my pancreatic function ain't now what it once was and I don't recover enough of it irrespective of what I lose...I hope to be able to assess that sometime soon if I can lose just a few pounds more. And then 'that will be that'.... I'll do my darndest to keep to my carefully-chosen diet...probably not over 1100 cals a day, unfortunately....as I've found out that I probably don't do enough during the day to use more energy than that amount.

Oh yes, finally.....I bought a bag of helpful little sweets yesterday that were on offer at Asda...Werthers 'Sugar-free' type-Originals. There were about 25 in the packet & work out therefore at 9.33333 per sweet! It's having something like that to utilize, when you must have something 'sweet'... that keeps you on the diet as opposed to giving up on it....though of course, it all has to be scrupulously written down and included in the daily 600!

Julie
 

bowell

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WELL DONE MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU :wink:

Make no mistake, my diet was rigorously adhered-to even though my 600 cals came not from milky drinks

All the shakes are mixed with water the diet allows For NO DAIRY PRODUCTS AT ALL?
the statement is milky drinks untrue
 

HDL_ME

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I'd just like to correct a mistake I made in my first post ...by recording my weight loss as
'1 stone 12 pounds' ...'Math's has never been my forte...that and 'Dieting'...two things I've never done well in the Past! Maybe I need to improve 'Subtracting' skills now....

Anyway, my weight loss is almost 1 stone 12 pounds now..I'm at 10 stone 8, this morning.

Although I'm working to achieve that 15% target off my starting weight...which (hopefully!) is 10 stone 7lbs... I think that it will probably take an extended period of eating properly and being stable with lower readings, before I shift the Diabetes totally. There's no doubt whatsoever that I've got some natural capacity back in the pancreatic department...and that is generally evidenced by my HBA1C of 5.5 (which I think is better than the averaged Test Group figure at Newcastle...that is recorded as HBA1c 6.0 at Week 8, I think...so it goes to show that you don't need to diet with just liquid supplements & vedg. if you don't want to. A calorie is a calorie...eat just 600 of them a day for 8 weeks & you're on the same sort of track. Obviously, there's a need to take a full vitamin and mineral supplement each day, to match that provided by the carefully-balanced liquid meal... but that's not too difficult to achieve with the excellent supplement pills available over the counter. And obviously, it takes a lot more hassle working-out what you eat every day and recording it very accurately).

Good luck to any of you that fancy giving it a Go...I doubt you'll regret it.
Irrespective of the diabetic element in my losing the weight... after a truly horrible & frightening bout of Swine flu at the start of the year, I needed to lose some weight and get my physique in better shape, anyway. It's now my goal to get my blood pressure back to where it needs to be...it's almost a good way there all ready thanks to the weight loss and increased fitness levels c/o the walking 'round the block' or down to the shops...I do most days, to make sure my body is using up the calories...& I'm sleeping much better as a result, though hopefully...not whilst having secret Dreams of Cream Cakes and Microchips!
(That reminds me..I've not had a box of 'Microchips' now for 9 weeks! Cor!)
 

minitata

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Hi HDL_ME,

In a lot of ways you remind me of me. I'm a Virgo - though quite atypical - all my chart is in one third of the field. I've been a diabetic for about 11 or 12 years - can't remember quite when I was diagnosed, though I had hypo symptoms for about 10 years before that. I've found that cutting out bread, potatoes, cake, many fruits, rice and pasta has helped me to lose some weight - 13 kilos in about 4 months. I also have other medical problems. :roll:

I loved my sweet stuff - chocolate especially - yet now I find I'm not bothered. I follow about 1470 calories a day, but usually less than 60 grams net carbs (total carbs less fibre). Hey, it works for me - and gives more freedom than cutting to such low calories - which I find I just can't stick to - I know my own emotional state for dieting too. :oops:

I started an OU degree in 1984 and got a BA in 2008 (even though I started in Maths and Technology I ended with a BA rather than a Bsc) and will be doing one final course to turn it into an honours degree this year. :arrow: 8)

Cheers & Keep up the good work

MTT
 

bowell

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One point
A few already doing this have experimented with dropping the level of carbs adding protein to keep the same Kcal level that has quickly shown that the Carb content plays some part in all this ?
also some have fallen of the wagon by altering the diet ?

So just going VLCD without the VIT MIN and the balanced make up of the meals
You could if not very careful be very harmful and work out a total waste of time and effort

Only benefit your Weight Loss NO mean feat on its it own,, - Well Done :D
I really hope it has worked for you ,But removing fat ,from around your organs ,I have my doubts


Study
Eleven people with type 2 diabetes (49.5 ± 2.5 years
Not saying you need to be around 49 But if lot younger a good chance other process may be involved in you being T2 ?

Second point was the starting group BMI at BMI 33.6±1.2 kg/m2,
Did you fall into that group ? If not would you have fat around your organs at all ?
I don't know But ????
This study was to try and copy post-bariatric surgery effect
Anyway, my weight loss is almost 1 stone 12 pounds now..I'm at 10 stone 8,
my HBA1C of 5.5 (which I think is better than the averaged Test Group figure at Newcastle...that is recorded as HBA1c 6.0 at Week 8,

What was you Fasting BG before the study was it 9.2+?

My last HB1c was 5.5 before I started the liquid diet
Still on all my meds im not classed as normal ?

After 1 week of restricted energy intake, fasting
plasma glucose normalised in the diabetic group (from 9.2±
0.4 to 5.9±0.4 mmol/l; p=0.003).
and was not significantly different from that of the non-diabetic control
group (5.3±0.1 mmol/l; p=0.18

At 8 weeks was not significantly different from non-diabetic control values
(6.0±0.2 vs 5.7±0.1%


Also remember you BG meter is not the same at the lab meter so to correct your reading with that
Plasma Readings to Whole Blood Readings 6 would be 5.3 ?

The results listed are the average from the whole group
even the control group Non diabetic came back with

Plasma glucose and insulin After 1 week of dietary
intervention, fasting plasma glucose decreased from 9.2±
0.4 to 5.9±0.4 mmol/l (p=0.003; Fig. 1) and was not
significantly different from that of the non-diabetic control
group (5.3±0.1 mmol/l; p=0.18). It remained stable for the
rest of the 8 week study (5.7±0.5 mmol/l at weeks 4 and 8;

Hbic test compared with yours is not a Real Test as that is over three months average
last time i looked 8 weeks is only 2 months ? if this group Already had higher BG pre study
hb1c would be higher be higher than yours ? anyway

If your BG was lower 4 weeks before the start of your diet would still be lower than study now
Most of the members of this study were Obese
you were classed as Obese ? One i know was over 23 stone ,Now 13stone med free
18 months plus on

None of your posts i can find your pre diet Hb1c I may be blind as i normally miss a few things

The people who took part in the Newcastle experiment had only had the condition for less than 4 years...I've had it for about 7 years at least I think,

Most of us prob had this a lot longer than from when we were diagnosed
Why are the study group any different ???? Alot of them were on stronger meds than Metformin

There's no doubt whatsoever that I've got some natural capacity back in the pancreatic department...and that is generally evidenced by my HBA1C of 5.5
How do you know maybe your were only insulin resistant and have near normal insulin production ?
Metformin is most useful for insulin resistants and max dose will only drop BG 1<>2 points

Last point i don't Think star signs played any part of the study or play any part in BG control ?

I think your weight loss is really Good and well done and the lower BG results your getting
well done

But Its still a large stretch saying its any way near the same as the Newcastle Study

1) No WAY is what you have done the same Diet
if fact you have not given any firm details on any of your meals ? only chicken and salad
non of your meal plans with BG results pre and post meal

2)Were you classed as Obese

3) Cant see any of your Pre diet BG results or day to day results

4)A lot have had the same similar results as you from normal weight loss diets
or cut the Carbs out But soon as you eat anything high in sugar = high BG

6)Have you Had a FBGT yet ? or even tried one yourself

As before well done with the weight loss and moving back to near normal BG
Hope you keep it up


If you wanted others to follow your Diet even try it , it would have been more helpful to post examples of your meal plans like Viv has done for others to Try
eg:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/diabetes-forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=18803


Bob Week 2 Newcastle diet
 

donnellysdogs

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I have to ask......

Afte all these 600 cals, 800 cals etc.........what is going to re-educate you to be able to eat normal healthy food portions without your weight/bm's/cholesterol raising......

I went to an eat as much as you want carvery today...and was absolutely staggered with the qtys that people put on their plates.

I am size 10 and lean everywhere.....so when my size of food today on my plate was 1/4 the size of everybody elses......it really worries me that going on these diets does not actually re-educate people to finding 'normal' quantitys of food that they can height in relation to size/activity and height etc.....

I really worry for any person having to resort to 600/800 diets.....but this is only my own personal opinion, as they do not actually re-educate you about the carbs and cals in normal everyday living........and I believe that is why so many people then put pounds or weight back on afterwards.

Don't get me wrong, I think it is fantastic that somebody can be disciplined enough to stick to these diets, but my fear is afterwards....and everyday living......
 

bowell

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Don't get me wrong, I think it is fantastic that somebody can be disciplined enough to stick to these diets, but my fear is afterwards....and everyday living......

You start by replacing one meal at a time with a healthy meal ,, I have been eating a lower carb for 4 years All was ok when i was working BG wise and my weight
Also my BG are OK as HB1c came back 5.5 still taking all my meds before the start of this diet

For me its the wheelchair belly i wish to rid ,,,If i no longer have to take tablets all well and good
every thing else has failed ? As i move very little

At the 8 week stage you replace one meal with a healthy meal keep on two shakes until wish to rid any more lbs for your target ,,,then you replace the second shake and so on

If i no longer have to take tablets all well and good

Bob
 

HDL_ME

Member
Messages
10
End of Term Report!

I'm off the 600 a day diet now. I've been at 10 and a half stone since the weekend (having reached my first target weight equalling 15% of my starting weight of 12 stone 5...assuming I've got the maths right!)
I've put away the notebook that I listed all my daily bits n' doings in.....all the food I ate, the glucose readings that I took & the weight I began each day at...
And I've come to my main conclusions about the whole 'experiment'

The most valuable thing that I personally learnt as a result of the 2 months dieting came about two and a half weeks into the diet. It was the realisation that I suddenly was feeling so much brighter in myself and in my attitude to life. I told my doctor when I went to see her, that it was as if I had been under a pall of negativity that... unbeknown to me... had been affecting so much of my daily attitude to life for as long as I can remember...decades and decades of it. Yes, I'm still as consciously negative/disillusioned as the next person about all those unsatisfactory things about life, about my life and the world around me....but it was the unknown/unconscious element that I'm referring-to...that I didn't realise had been having such a profound effect.
What had caused it? I really can only think that it was as a result of what I'd been eating....cakes, biscuits, crisps, too-many Sherry Trifles & Microchips etc... sugar & calorie--rich foods & loads of them... & then a benefit from the better food that I had since replaced it with. Yes, add to that the fact that I had taken control of my life & what I was doing with it....that was certainly part of why I felt more positive....but I do believe that too much rubbish-eating had had a very profoundly detrimental affect to how I felt, without my realising I was under this 'pall'.

As for the diet itself.....I cannot say how chuffed I am with having embarked upon it & the fantastic results that it has brought. I'm fitter, brighter, thinner, don't take any pills save for my Lisinopril 10mg (& I'm working on getting the blood pressure down, now) & for the last week, I haven't had any meter reading over 8.2...most all have been under 8...with no pills taken & now, that is with the addition of a little bit of fruit as a Pudding after my first course! And my medical records now show acceptably 'normal' readings for HBA1C and cholesterol.
What was so good about it...& I've been on most other kinds of diet...was that it gave excellent results, quickly... & there was just no cheating to be had! By the time you'd eaten the necessary protein & vedg each day...there really wasn't ought left to play-around with! You just cannot cheat or negotiate yourself into having that little bit of something-or-other off tomorrows calorie count, today...because come tomorrow, without your full 600 a days-worth, it's just 'Not On!' There's the daily indulgence...mine was that packet of French Fries....which I've now upgraded to a pkt of Onion & Rosemary 'Sunbites'...120 cals...as opposed to 83! But I've gotta have my bag of crisps...couldn't have managed the diet without 'em!

I fully expect to have to remain on a carefully controlled diet till 'whenever'.....but I'm happy with that. I can now eat a big meal (of the right stuff, mind) have a bit of Afters and all with no pills. Result!

Julie
 

pixor

Active Member
Messages
38
ShyGirl said:
I didn't realise that spikes of 8 were considered acceptable. I worry what spokes will do to my eyes.

I've tried to cut back on calories since being taken off metformin but my levels have risen higher than I had feared.

Maybe i've been going wrong with the type of yoghurt I eat combined with the odd piece of toast!

I find that bread is the worst thing for spiking blood sugar levels other than sugar. The highly processed carbs in it get broken down to sugars very quickly. Also, most yogurts other than full fat Greek have a lot of sugars in them.
 

HDL_ME

Member
Messages
10
An Update.....

Following the loss of two stone, I borrowed a blood pressure meter from the doctor's surgery and tested several times a day for 10 days...with the result that I averaged an amazing 118/74...a reading that bore no relation whatsoever to the previous readings before the diet....& one I never imagined I could possibly ever attain this side of reincarnation!

After consultation with my doctor, I've come off the 10mg Lisinopril & am now on just 5mg a day for the weeks ahead, with a possible view to coming off the medication completely if future readings suggest that it is feasible.

It's well over 3 months since I started my version of a 600 a day diet & goodness me, what a great day it was when I decided to take the plunge? The outcome has been just wonderful....it's the only word for it, to my mind. It's been like getting out of jail. I enjoy what food I eat now, infinitely more...although there's less of it....than when I could stuff myself with cakes & calories when the urge took me. That's my third biggest plus. The second is my level of general fitness & good health....being able to comfortably fit into clothes size 16 or below...instead of 22 & above.
And finally, the biggest plus point....the brighter mental state that I awake into most mornings....much less depressed, much more inclined to be active & to view being in the world a positive thing, something tinged with optimism rather than wishing that I just wasn't here anymore.
The very greatest realisation is "just look what excess weight has been doing to your life for the last quarter century, Julie"..... It's just a pity that I didn't fully realise this key fact a long while ago.