New Type 2, Questions & Concerns

Auto E said:

Ian, do you have a place on the forum where you describe your experiment with the Dave Feldman protocol? I'd like to hear more of your story on that.

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The Dave Feldman Protocol is just something I tread so as not to spook my 'stone-age' GP with a high LDL reading at the time I had my HbA1C and Lipids tested.

He'd told me several lies including that you can't have an LDL too low. - Obviously rubbish since your need all the (non-oxidized, non-glycated) forms or Cholesterol in order to live! But since he is obsessive about LDL and since I was ignoring his stupid High Carb Low Fat advice, in order to avoid yet another confrontation about increased statins (which raise BG) I did the 2nd half of the Dave Feldman Protocol (to potentially 'artificially lower my LDL for a couple of days) to coincide with the blood samples being taken.

Did it work for me? - Probably, but not hugely. I'm not sure since only did 2nd half i.e. just 1 blood test.
Was it worth trying? - Yes, although in the end I saw a less pre-historic GP for discussion of my results. She didn't care about my Cholesterol numbers (not bad by any means) she was more interested that (though sadly not how) I had done what she considered almost impossible in getting my HbA1C from 53 to 45 in a few months without any medication and losing 23lbs without more exercise and without counting Calories.

Edited to expand: One perceived problem of LCHF is that while weight (= excess body fat) is being lost, it is normal for LDL levels to rise a fair bit and then reduce (often to lower than at the start) in the weight maintenance phase i.e. when weight is at ideal levels and Blood Glucose levels are good and so the Way Of Eating is no longer targeting the burning of more body fat.

Stephen Lewis said:

So @Auto E. A few years ago I saw on US Public Broadcasting (like BBC but by donation) a programme that talked about research at Washington State University on bears. They discovered that when bears prepare for hibernation the pancreas (alpha cells?) stops producing insulin. This enables surplus glucose to be converted into fat (by beta cells?) for use during the winter.

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Stephen,
Either you mis-typed or you mis-remembered.
It is Insulin which drives supposedly surplus Blood Glucose into Fat Cells. Insulin is the fat storage hormone. And it is Pancreatic Beta Cells which produce Insulin.

Thus all any non-diabetic bears need to do to prepare for hibernation is to gorge on carbs. Their Insulin ensures that they increase their body fat stores. Then when hibernating they are not eating carbs (or anything else) so Insulin is absent allowing the stored body fat to be used as energy to keep their body ticking over until they can eat again in spring.
Edited to say: Obviously any diabetic bears who need to hibernate would die in the first year of diabetes.