ITV documentary The Fast Fix: Diabetes investigates type 2 diabetes remission

A group of people have helped show TV audiences it is possible to reverse type 2 diabetes symptoms after participating in an 800-calorie per day diet for four weeks.
On Wednesday ITV broadcast the first part of The Fast Fix: Diabetes, which involved five volunteers with type 2 diabetes who attempted to overhaul their lifestyles in a bid to improve their health.
The experiment follows in the vein of Professor Roy Taylor’s interventio, dubbed the ‘Newcastle diet’. In his study, the DiRECT trial, participants ate a calorie-restricted meal replacement diet for three to five months before re-introducing a greater range of solid foods. This led to type 2 diabetes remission after one year in over half of the participants.
In this new experiment, participants were asked to follow a diet of 800 calories a day in the form of four 200-calorie milkshakes that contained all the necessary vitamins and minerals an average person requires.
The five overweight or obese participants moved into the Fast Fix Clinic for four weeks where their progress was overseen by GP Dr Zoe Williams and Professor Jason Gill, a leading name in the prevention of type 2 diabetes.
Before and after the experiment all the participants had their weight, liver fat percentage and glucose levels measured. After completing the intensive four-week diet, the measurements were taken again with excellent outcomes.
One participant completely overturned their type 2 diabetes with no symptoms, having reduced their liver fat percentage from 27.5 to 7.5. The others all saw significantly reduced blood sugar levels and weight loss.
Speaking to Mail Online, Professor Gill said: “People used to think diabetes was irreversible but recent research suggests this is not the case. This is a fantastic opportunity to test this in a controlled setting.”
The second episode will be broadcast on Thursday evening, which will see the participants get sent home and asked to continue the diet. Episode 1 is available to watch on ITV.com for the next 29 days
Editor’s note: A very low calorie diet is just one method of achieving type 2 diabetes remission. For more information on how a low carb way of eating helps to achieve weight loss and normalise blood sugar levels, visit our Low Carb Program.