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% of reversals?


You did read @Andrew Colvin post, directly previous to your post?
 

I can eat anything now without losing control of my blood sugar. If I put the weight on I've lost I suspect I'll lose control again. But I have no symptoms of diabetes. I consider myself in remission rather than reversed but there a debate about the English language!
 
That's amazing, well done. It's a shame there is such a big debate on this, as clearly it can and does happen, and it might encourage more folk to have more willpower.
 
This thread has given me food for thought. My HbA1c is currently in the non-diabetic range, yet it is only there because I eat a strict low carb diet. I cannot eat high carb food without it affecting my BG (but also my energy and mood). That is why I think of my diabetes as being in remission, not reversed. But perhaps it has reversed, and what I have is an intolerance to carbs...

Although, it is really just an intolerance to carbs, when even too much protein can increase my BG, or even just eating too much LC food in one meal (the Chinese restaurant syndrome, described by Bernstein and observed in my case)? I also need to watch my exercise and my eating pattern (i.e. I cannot graze throughout the day). So it's not just carbs for me, I still have diabetes but it is in remission - and long may it stay like that!
 

Andrew - When you state your ".... body complains during the transition every time."; does your body complains both ways - going low to high as well as the more predictably high to low?
 

I think I agree with Mike, it's semantics whether you consider it reversal or remission, whichever thought process helps you stay healthy. I consider myself in remission, because I know that if I eat high-carb foods my sugars go out of control immediately. Reversal to me would mean that everything was fixed and I could go back to eating whatever I wanted, by thinking of it as remission I remember the potentially serious consequences a lapse in my lifestyle could bring.

If I were to think of myself as no longer diabetic, just with an 'intolerance to carbs', I feel like I'd be more likely to cheat without facing up to the probable consequences.

What I do know from my own experience is that making lifestyle changes can drop your numbers back to non-diabetic levels, and I started from a "I can't possibly give up bread and chocolate" point of view.
 
AndBreathe said:
Andrew - When you state your ".... body complains during the transition every time."; does your body complains both ways - going low to high as well as the more predictably high to low?
Click to expand...
low carb to high carb complaining is itchy eyes after meals for a couple of days (as I hit 8.5 ish)
high to low is muscle screaming with micro cramps (best way to explain it)

I know why do it then? Easy really, life is about changes so like to keep my body guessing.
 
By setting myself a target of 50g carbs per day, I should have been able to eat three meals per day and have leftover carbs for snacks. But my body doesn't accept that. It reacts to the 9.3g of carbs in a 15g bag of organic corn and herb puffs for toddlers, the 2.5g of carbs in a tablespoon of piccalilli - even 2 teaspoons of piccalilli.

Effectively, my way of eating is completely added sugar-free. The only carbs I have now come from vegetables, dairy and the occasional nibble on fruit eg a very few grapes or cherries. I eat under 30g carbs a day like this, in fact probably under 25g. Most of the time I have normal BG.

I don't regard myself as having reversed T2 diabetes, or put myself into remission, not if 2 tsps of piccalilli can bump me out of ketosis and give me higher BG, brain fog and dehydration.

I do take the view, reading the fora on this website, that very many people happily consume carbs and there seems to be an attitude of smugness sometimes, about that. But I always wonder whether consuming carbs is wise for T2s. I'd rather have good vision than toast.
 

I wouldn't say anyone is smug on this forum.
In fact, some of them come over as quite inspiring, rather than smug, and possibly may be the push other posters need when they see the results from those that have a wider viewpoint of ways to tackle diabetes.

But, there is no need to read posts you don't like, simply put the poser on ignore if you don't agree with their lifestyle choices.
 

Your rant would better placed in a carb v no carb threat. This is about the likelihood of reversing diabetes.
 
This paper presents a study of the rate of remission of type 2 diabetes:

http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/37/12/3188.long

Their definition of remission is "achieving glycemia below the diabetic range in the absence of active pharmacologic or surgical therapy."

According to this paper, of the 122,781 diabetic's records they studied, only 0.007% achieved remission for longer than 5 years.
 
Personally I think the likelihood of a true reversal is very low, but it does happen. As far as I can see those who had the worst diets before becoming T2 have the greatest chance of a reversal where they can eat a 'normal' amount of carbs. However, I don't believe they would be able to go back to their old weight or their old personal 'normal' amount of carbs, because T2 would be triggered again.

It isn't that others don't agree with their lifestyle it's that most of us can't go back to a 'normal' diet. So yes it's inspiring to see that a few people have reversed their diabetes, but also a bit soul destroying when you realise that it doesn't work for you, despite doing everything you can to make it happen. I am truly happy when I see that another person has reversed their diabetes. It's great news, but it's a fact that most of us will only control it not reverse it. It's good to have hope that we can achieve a reversal, but devastating when you realise it's unachievable for you personally. It took me a long while to get over it, so I wouldn't want to give false hope to others and see their hopes dashed like mine were. Reversal is possible for a few, not many.
 

I know what you mean, but I would rather aggressively go for the 'reversal', by any means possible, and not achieve it, than not try, and always wonder if I was tricking myself on a 'second best, easy option'
Even if I didn't achieve reversal, the trying would have achieved a lot of good results, so it's win win, not win lose.
 
Yes I agree, that's why I did it, and of course if you put all you have into it then you go into it believing it will work. That's why I was so very disappointed. Like you said, at least I know I tried and I did lose a little weight and after being so strict with my diet switching to LCHF was actually a pleasure.
 
But as least you know you have the commitment, you made the effort, and didn't let it beat you. You're in charge of the diabetes, it's not in charge of you. You can't find your right way overnight, but we can all find it eventually.
 
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Another interesting slide which Prof Taylor says shows that the majority of Type 2's are overweight (BMI 28-29) rather than obese:

 

I guess whether you've reversed your diabetes depends on your definition of reversed. I consider it reversed if you have normal blood glucose without meds or starving yourself, but that's just my definition. Really, to consider it reversed you'd also have to have normal plasma insulin levels, but that would be difficult to get the government to pay for that.
 
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