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Newcastle Diet question

MCMLXXIII

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,858
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Diet only
Good evening.

I've been a Type 2 Diabetic for around 14 years now.
I take 1000mg Metformin SR and 1mg Dapagolfozin per day.
I'm 52 this year and slim build and always argued (as my family history has dictated) a fatty liver/pancreas problem that I believe to be the main root to my condition.
I've decided to try The Newcastle Diet after reading the Professor's book who pioneered it.
So it's 800 calories a day and complete shakes for the next 8 weeks.
May I ask a question?
Should I continue with taking my meds or stop?
My last hb1ac was 58 in June 2025.
Id sincerely appreciate any thoughts or advice anyone can offer.

Thanking you

Chris
 
No body on this forum would be allowed to advise on whether you should alter your meds. You need to ask your GP or diabetes nurse.
 
Fair play, thankyou for the reply, I'm merely guaging responses from anyone who's tried it and their experiences, therefore I apologise if I gave the wrong impression.
 
Hi @MCMLXXIII

I have used the Newcastle Diet method, but with support of my GP and local pharmacist (from whom I purchased the food replacement products). Between them they monitored my BG levels BP and weight, also urine for ketosis. The design of the regime is to switch to ketosis ( fat burning mode) to reduce the amount of stored fat. As my weight and BG levels reduced, so did the need for medication. I had only been on a low dose of metformin, and was able to stop that after a week.

A difficulty you could have is that you say you are of slim build, and this is a weight loss regime. Also that you are on prescribed meds Metformin and Dapagolfozin, ( though your forum profile nedds to be updated as it doesn’t mention meds) . Do you need to lose weight?
As previously mentioned , members can’t advise on medication. I would never advocate attempting Newcastle diet without first discussing with GP or nurse, and seeking their support. If it is suitable, in some areas NHS also provides the meal replacement products to suitable patients.
 
Hello

Thankyou for the comprehensive replies.
My family has a history of being predominantly slim but with fatty organs.
Also my grandparents both were taken by pancreatic cancer and to be honest it frightens me. I've 4 lovely children and happily married and I'd like to think about my long term stay on Earth.
I'm sorry but I haven't had a liver test as such.
I went Vegan for a while about 8 years ago and I had significant results with that in terms of my HB1AC result.
Admittedly I do like a tipple too so alcohol has been described by one professor as liquid fat so I will cut down on my weekend excess.
Im seeing a physiotherapist next week due to an ongoing pain in my glutes I can't seem to shake and I've generally not felt great.
I've a glucose monitor arriving today I need to do do some tests with over the next couple of days to see what my average is.
I currently weigh 73kg (or 11 stone 3/4 I think).
I have a very supportive wife who will also speak her mind if it looks like I'm waining on this.
I am on testosterone replacement therapy and I have just had enough of this thing shutting down or creeping up on different parts of my body so I researched and picked the Newcastle diet.
I have a Doctor through my work app because getting to see my own is rather difficult so they said they would send a letter to them advising what was discussed, pitfalls, concerns etc.

Thankyou, all sincerely appreciated.

Chris
 
My liver tests are done annually with my HbA1c, along with kidney tests too. My surgery requests them routinely and I check them online, that way I know how well/badly I'm doing in a few areas, not just HbA1c.

My non diabetic husband has had these tests requested by his doctor too. His ALT liver count was greatly improved by a lowish carb way of eating. He lost over half a stone in a couple of weeks too even though he wasn't obese.
 
Thankyou
I just checked my results in the NHS app and as well as my testosterone and hb1ac I do have a biochemical result as "normal".
 
I've just googled NHS 'biochemical test' and found that

Common biochemistry measurements include:

  • kidney function tests
  • liver function tests
  • cholesterol
  • hormones
  • glucose and HbA1c
  • drug monitoring
Assuming these were all done, then it's unlikely that the liver is the problem. However they may just have tested the areas pertinent to their recent investigations and not done a whole panel of bloods.

Have you followed a low carb way of eating? I know you say you follow a vegan diet, but that could be low or high carb, or somewhere in between. Low carbing has helped my own fatty liver recover somewhat and also reduced my HbA1c. Personally, I prefer this method over calorie restricted eating.
 
That's certainly worth considering thankyou.
I couldn't stick with the vegan diet unfortunately.
When I got Covid I was left with a few issues too, such as I suffered permanent hearing loss.
I are what I could at the time and went off the rails with it all a bit.
It's my intention to give this a go and see what the results are, but absolutely post Newcastle I think you'd be a fool not to cut the carbs down if not out.
 
As far as diabetes is concerned there's no need to follow a vegan diet if you don't want to. Some folk here do the opposite and follow a carnivore diet, which if you enjoy it (I don't ) can be great for BG levels.
Whatever diet you choose it needs to be one you enjoy.
Good luck and let us know how you are getting on
 
I think it's not practical to stick to 800 kcal/day and not also be low carb. Even if ALL the energy came from carb, that would be a maximum of 200g carb/day (at 4kcal per gram). In reality some daily kcal will come from protein and fat.

Low carb is usually taken to be effective at around 130g carb a day or less. If you replace 70g carb with the equivalent kcal in protein and fat, you'd be looking at those sources providing about 360 kcal - about 90g protein (no fat) or 40g fat (no protein) or a mix - eg 45g protein and 20g fat. That's not a lot.

I think the Newcastle Diet is effectively low-carbing on under 130g carb/day.
 
Thankyou.
I'm going to do the shake for breakfast and Tea (we don't call it dinner up north ) but I'm dehydrating some chilli Tofu and spice baby plum tomatoes to give me a snack for my dinner (which sime if you call lunch)
 
There is not much more to add, but I do have a quick general question. What are your Triglyceride levels like? Triglyceride levels are a good indicator as to how much fat is being stored in your body. Whether your food to energy consumed is balanced, plus Triglycerides may also be a sign of any increase in fat around the liver.
 
Excellent question and yes I do have high Triglycerides, thankyou.
At least that makes it seem a wee bit more applicable now.
 
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So far as I'm aware, the absolute best thing you can do to reduce Triglycerides is to go onto a Low Carb way of eating (it also boosts HDL which is thought to be heart healthy if 'natural' (studies found that people with high HDL and low Triglycerides had few er heart attacks, but that could not be replicated using drugs to raise the HDL). This works well for all body shapes (but, though most find their LDL either stays the same or reduces, many skinny T2D's on Low Carb find their LDL increases, so this needs consideration).
 
I would echo what @Pipp said...you should have support and monitoring by your GP if you are following the ND. I did it for 7 weeks without support and had to give up as I was ill and in alot of pain.
 
MCMLXXIII said:
Thankyou.
I'm going to do the shake for breakfast and Tea (we don't call it dinner up north ) but I'm dehydrating some chilli Tofu and spice baby plum tomatoes to give me a snack for my dinner (which sime if you call lunch)
Click to expand...
As you seem to be determined to try, please follow the advice from the Newcastle diet team.

I reiterate, discuss your meds, and possible reduction of them, with your GP or nurse. Be aware of the possible pitfalls. E.g. Social occasions where people try to tell you, “ a day off won’t hurt”. It won’t, but could take you out of ketosis (fat burning mode). Perhaps get some keto strips to test urine for ketosis, which could kick in within a few days of starting ND. Make sure you use the recommended oil which is needed for absorption of fat soluble vitamins , and prevention of gallstones.
Have a follow on plan for when you have completed the calorie restriction phase. Low carb is a good choice.
Good luck.
 
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