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Newcastle diet

Alexandra100

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,802
Location
West Yorkshire
Type of diabetes
Prediabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
I would very much like to try the Newcastle diet but fear my BMI of 16.5 is too low to allow further weight loss. Please does anyone know whether it is necessary to lose a certain number of pounds or conversely to arrive at a certain weight?
 
There is no one weight to suit everyone, we are all different and an optimum weight for me would be unacceptable to someone else. With a bmi (which is, after all, only a guide) of 16.5 I am wondering why you want to try the Newcastle diet? I have heard that an aim of 15% body weight loss is good but that would take your weight down further than is wise.
 
The average weight loss on the ND was approx 15% and that is the amount suggested by Professor Taylor.
There is no number of pounds given as everyone will be different weights. I would not pay a great deal of attention to your BMI if it is just based on your height + age + weight, since the important thing is your "personal fat threshold" and there is no way of quantifying that because again everyone is different.
When I started the ND I was not over weight and have never been considered obese, however I have obvious fat around my stomach. But that is not the important fat to get rid of, the fat in the liver and pancreas is what we need to get rid of and that happens at different rates. The fat in the liver goes quickly and its surprising how fast your liver function returns with regard to diabetes. But the pancreas takes longer which is why the diet is carried out over an 8 week period.
Will it work ? I don't know, but it has been great not feeling unwell and having BG readings like those of a non diabetic and on no medications for T2 at all when I was taking 9 tablets a day prior to the start of the diet.

Speak to your Dr or DN and give it a go you have nothing to lose. Good luck
 
The essential theory in the Newcastle diet is that when one lose the fat ( that shouldn't be there ) in the pancreas and liver ; Then one would stop being diabetic Maybe there is more going on in the NewCasttle diet than that , But essential it would mean that when a "slim-fat" person loses the little fat around intestines pancreas and liver the person would stop being diabetic , and that could be 3 kg or 20 kg or 40kg one would need to loose before that happens But most likely a very fat person would need to lose a lot more than a very lean person . But What is also good to remember maybe not all will be able to reverse diabetes there could be maybe a range of reasons to why People do become diabetic type 2 maybe other than having too much fat in ones pancreas
 
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Hi. I can't see why you need to think about the ND with your BMI. Surely you just need to continue to keep the carbs under some control and have enough protein and fats to keep you feeling full. With that low level of BMI are you sure you are not T1 rather than T2 assuming you are slim? I would suggest to the GP that he/she gives you the two tests for T1 i.e. GAD and c-peptide; misdiagnosis is common.
 
I wouldn't attempt to lose any weight if I had your BMI. Even if the ND works for you and you are no longer diabetic afterwards you could be harming your body in other ways by being far too thin. Being underweight is more damaging to overall health than being overweight. I agree with @Daibell 's comments.
 
Above all my advise is to try to be gentle with whatever regime you consider. I did the Newcastle diet , my bmi was 24/25 and is now 19/20. Personally I found the diet brutal. Not the first few weeks which were lovely but then I got week and tried to push myself physically. Looking back this was a mistake . During this time I suffered a sports injury ( Inguinal Hernia) which required surgery and am just recovering from 6 months later. So in short be kind to yourself ...........
 
Hi @Alexandra100, if you have accepted part of the premise that excessive visceral fat potentially in and around your liver and pancreas is causing your diabetes, you could consider weight training.

This would increase your BMI and obviously add healthy weight, improve insulin resistance and also help achieve the removal of visceral fat.

If you go down this route, a useful tool would be a set of body composition scales (I recommend the Tanita brand which can be picked up from Argos for circa £35.00). The scales would provide a baseline which you can cross reference with your progress (fasting blood glucose, HbA1c and if possible fasting insulin).
 

well there are very thin persons that have reversed their diabetes by doing the Newcasttle diet like this gentleman :
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/a...etes-just-11-days--going-starvation-diet.html
 
In the Michael Mosley Blood Sugar Diet book (which is based on the ND) and the foreword is written by Professor Roy Taylor of Newcastle University, one of the reasons listed for people NOT to do the diet is if their BMI is under 21.
 
@Freema If by reversal we mean simply controlling diabetes and having normal BGs then LCHF reversed my diabetes in a couple of weeks too. I do worry that some will try to cure their T2 and end up with more health problems due to this extreme diet. T2 actually isn't the end of the world. It's easily controlled by reducing carb intake without taking the risks of extreme dieting.
 
Isn't your main aim to control blood glucose?
At the moment I am finding that I am eating just about the same diet as when controlling my weight decades ago - and my blood tests are in the normal range. I do need to lose weight and I am seeing a very gradual reduction, but I am pretty sure that the weightloss is not the reason for my results.
 
What do we know about OP and his health issues - apart from that he's underweight?

I think it is quite dangerous to suggest or recommend than just anyone can go on the ND. We need to remember we are all different and while ND can be useful for rapid weightloss and a swift control over BG - there are groups of people that it isn't recommended for. Michael Mosley says in his BSD book that people shouldn't go on the diet if:

- They are under 18
- Their BMI is below 21
- They are recovering from surgery or are generally frail

Further, it should be discussed with their doctor before starting the diet if any of the following apply:

- They have a history of eating disorders
- They are on insulin or diabetic medication other than metformin - as they may need to plan how to reduce medication to avoid too fast a drop in blood sugar
- They are on blood pressure tablets - as they may have to reduce or come off them
- They have moderate or severe retinopathy - they should have an extra screening within six months of reducing or reversing the diabetes
- They are pregnant or breastfeeding
- They have a significant psychiatric disorder
- They are taking warfarin
- They have epilepsy
- They have a significant medical condition
 
An ultrasound scan (can be requested by a GP and does not cost the NHS a lot) will show if there is fat round the liver and pancreas. This is one of the best method we have at present to tell if there is fat in the liver or pancreas as the MNR scanner they used at Newcastle is not a normal hospital scanner.

If there is fat round the liver and pancreases is it likely to be of benefit loosing it regardless of BMI.

Unless someone has had Type2 for a very long time, not having fat round the liver and pancrease will make me question if the Type2 label is the correct label for the person......

The recommendation in Michael Mosley book about not doing the diet if the BMI is below 21 is because of the risk that someone has a different type of diabetes and have incorrectly been told they have Type2, but if the presence of fat can be confirmed and in good health I don't think a lower BMI is a 100% reasons for someone not to lose weight.

However "Intermittent Fasting" and/or LCHF (without leaving out the high fat) may be a better option for someone with a low BMI.

Resistance training would be a great regardless of the diet being used.

(Remember it seems that between 5% and 25% of people who are told they have Type2 have a different type of diabetes that does not respond to the Newcastle Diet. It will be interesting to see how this has affected the results that will be published at the end of this year.)
 
ringi said:
An ultrasound scan (can be requested by a GP and does not cost the NHS a lot) will show if there is fat round the liver and pancreas.
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I would love one of these and will ask my GP in Nov when I have my annual check, I am pretty sure what his reply will be though - I had to beg for metformin tablets.
 
I assume you have had liver function tests, if so check the results, as they can show if you have "Fatty Liver", doctors often don't tell people unless the result is very bad.
 
ringi said:
I assume you have had liver function tests, if so check the results, as they can show if you have "Fatty Liver", doctors often don't tell people unless the result is very bad.
Click to expand...
Yes I have. I had fatty liver for years before they told me( long before I was T2) . As soon as I knew I started trying to rectify it. My ALT test is normal or near normal nowadays (down from 160 ish 10+ years ago)
 
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I expect you just need to do a lot more of whatever you did to recify your faty liver, as the fat comes of the liver cells a lot quicker then the pancreas cells.
 
I am hoping for a magic bullet to do away with my blood glucose control problems, as many people seem to have done.
 
Thanks Peerless, your story is very encouraging. Now I understand it is a matter of getting down below a personal threshold it seems to me that given how skinny I am, my threshold cannot be far below my current weight. I have no visible belly fat, but as you say, that's not what matters. Losing a few pounds would not take a ferocious diet. Given that I have started restricting carbs somewhat anyway, I think weight loss might even be hard to avoid. There is a limit to how many avocados I can eat in a day!
 
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