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Radical diet can reverse type 2 diabetes, new study shows

theguardian.com

121–130 of 271 posts

Re: Radical diet can reverse type 2 diabetes, new study shows

#121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My caloric intake while eating at a deficit was about 1200-1500 kcal. Maintenance is about 2200. I eat a lot of meat, poultry, fish, eggs. No restriction on fats, but I try to favor animal fats and olive oil. Unlimited vegetables. Fruit, but only raw (no dried fruit or juice), and favor berries over bananas. Nuts and cheese in moderation. If I want carbs, favor sweet potato / regular potato over grains. Generally avo…

Is dried fruit bad?

It's not bad per se, but it contains a lot of sugar per unit volume. Some dried fruit even has extra sugar added (effectively fruit flavored candy). So it's easy to accidentally consume a lot of calories without feeling full.

Re: Radical diet can reverse type 2 diabetes, new study shows

#122
post #3

> he diet was a formula of 825–853 calories per day for 3 to 5 months, followed by the stepped reintroduction of food over two to eight weeks. That is going to be a brutal 3-5 months. Worth it in the end though. Also, c'mon, a range of 825-853 calories? Nobody is counting calories that accurately and it would have been better to say "roughly 850 kCal per day".

That's not so brutal when consider that there are a group of people who purposefully consume less calories in order to prolong their lifespan:

https://www.crsociety.org

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calorie_restriction

Re: Radical diet can reverse type 2 diabetes, new study shows

#123
post #98
post #12

I went on a medically-supervised, very low calorie and low carb (keto) diet after being diagnosed with diabetes. A few months and about 50lbs in, I had no signs of insulin resistance whatsoever, my A1C was down to completely normal values, and I was able to discontinue my medication entirely. That diagnosis, as hard as it was to hear, was one of the absolute best things to ever happen to me.

I was under the impression that being in ketosis could be harmful to the organs of those with diabetes. Is this just a myth or were there medications that aided you?

That's ketoacidosis

Re: Radical diet can reverse type 2 diabetes, new study shows

#124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My caloric intake while eating at a deficit was about 1200-1500 kcal. Maintenance is about 2200. I eat a lot of meat, poultry, fish, eggs. No restriction on fats, but I try to favor animal fats and olive oil. Unlimited vegetables. Fruit, but only raw (no dried fruit or juice), and favor berries over bananas. Nuts and cheese in moderation. If I want carbs, favor sweet potato / regular potato over grains. Generally avo…

Is dried fruit bad?

I'm not really sure, but it's a form of concentrated sugar, so I try to avoid it as part of my overall goal of limiting carbohydrates/sugar/calories.

It's also similar to nuts/cheese in that if I allow myself unrestricted access, I tend to overeat them.

They're probably not that bad though.

Re: Radical diet can reverse type 2 diabetes, new study shows

#125
post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Okay, for the sake of argument, let's also refuse to pay for treatment for BASE jumpers and cave divers. Now let's refuse coverage to people who get STDs. Now people who smoke. Now people who don't fasten their seat belts. Do you see where that goes?

Yes, I see where it goes. Either premiums would rise on the basis of lifestyle, or supplementary health insurance companies would pick up the slack. Your choice to smoke, have unprotected sex, or BASE jump would come with additional costs, which would be in addition to the cost of the cigarettes, wingsuits, etc - rather than being an externality which society pays. Note that we already do this for life insurance, and…

I've had life insurance from my last two and current employers and haven't been to a doctor at all during that time, so I guess you can?

Re: Radical diet can reverse type 2 diabetes, new study shows

#126
post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's tough not only to cut back the calories, but to pack needed nutrients into the few calories remaining. Over several months you could accidentally end up with a severe deficiency of something.

True, but you should always listen to your body. It usually craves the things you need. If you of course discount the craving for sugars and the like.

In my experience "listen to your body" is most often an excuse that people use to continue making unhealthy choices about food. Is there any research data on the correlation between food cravings and actual nutritional deficiencies?

Re: Radical diet can reverse type 2 diabetes, new study shows

#127

I think the headline is accurate because that is indeed what the study shows, since it compared a control group to a group on a very low calorie diet. But I'd really like to know if this is any _more_ beneficial than more normal, gradual weight loss, like a 2000 calorie diet that gets you down to the same weight.

A lot of people with sedentary lifestyles will gain weight on a 2000kcal diet.

Re: Radical diet can reverse type 2 diabetes, new study shows

#128

This has been common knowledge for some time, but as with everything else in western medicine its "research evidence or bust".

Many things that were once "common knowledge" are now known to be false. That's why modern evidence-based medicine is increasingly effective and offers the only viable path forward. But it also makes me wonder what things we currently consider to be common knowledge today will be as thoroughly debunked as bloodletting 100 years from now.

Re: Radical diet can reverse type 2 diabetes, new study shows

#129
post #12

I went on a medically-supervised, very low calorie and low carb (keto) diet after being diagnosed with diabetes. A few months and about 50lbs in, I had no signs of insulin resistance whatsoever, my A1C was down to completely normal values, and I was able to discontinue my medication entirely. That diagnosis, as hard as it was to hear, was one of the absolute best things to ever happen to me.

Same. Pre-diabetic and all kinds of other health issues started creeping up (obesity, GERD, really bad heartburn, sleep apnea, etc). Most doctors would've just had me take medications, wear a mask that would breathe for me while I slept, and put my bed at an angle so I could sleep through the heartburn/reflux. Started calorie restricting and eliminated grains and sugar from my diet almost entirely, and all pre-diabet…

> wear a mask that would breathe for me while I slept

Dude, that's a really bad misrepresentation and very unhelpful to all the people who do need one. Many of them already struggle with self-worth issues, and seeing (whether intentional or not) lies like that spread, or worse, parroted back at them by others later does not help that.

It's made a lot worse by the alternative being to gamble on suffocating in your sleep, or doing brain damage to yourself with prolonged apnea periods that drop your blood oxygen, or at the very least, having a shit life due to low energy levels every day from having been 8 hours with the blood oxygen level of a 90 year old.

You're still breathing entirely under your own power with CPAP devices. All they do is basically balloon you up a little to keep your throat from closing up in your sleep, by providing a continuous flow of air pressure higher than the ambient air pressure. Yes they have an up/down rhythm that matches your breathing, but that's not because it breathes for you, but because it literally matches your breathing patterns so it won't obstruct your own breathing.

> put my bed at an angle so I could sleep through the heartburn/reflux

Also, to be honest, this is ridiculous. Medicines to help your body regulate gastric acid exist and aren't particularly expensive.

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