Health and being healthy are made more complicated than they need to be, and often it is always doom and gloom about health. Really, there is a lot of good news. Well, here’s some great news from work out of Glasgow, and this is from Medscape UK (Source).
Type 2 diabetes, I’m quoting, can now be regarded as a curable/reversible condition, according to the lead researcher for the major UK trial of weight management.
Michael Lean, Professor of Human Nutrition at the University of Glasgow, told Medscape News UK that Type 2 diabetes was reversible for more than 80%—that’s eight-zero, 80%—of people, if they were, in his words, “willing and able to take it seriously and lose over 15 kilograms.” That’s really, really good news.
The first important point to make is that Type 2 diabetes is different from Type 1. In Type 1 diabetes, the body is not producing enough insulin or may not be producing any insulin at all, and people with Type 1 diabetes will need insulin injections for their entire life. Type 2 diabetes is quite different. It’s not that the body isn’t producing enough insulin or any insulin—it may actually be producing too much because the body becomes resistant to the effects of insulin. Insulin resistance, as the term has been coined, is a precursor to Type 2 diabetes.
Insulin is the hormone produced by the pancreas that removes glucose from the bloodstream. The body likes to maintain everything within a particular range, whether it’s temperature, blood pressure, heart rate, blood glucose, blood calcium—you name it. So if there’s too much glucose in the bloodstream, the body produces insulin to remove that glucose, typically by converting it into fat. The body stores it, which is why we gain weight if we consume more energy than we need. If you put more fuel into a car than it needs, the car won’t get bigger. In this sense, cars may have an advantage over humans. Ultimately, that is the role of insulin.
It can be frustrating for people who exercise, eat some carbs for breakfast, and find their body is still in fat storage mode. It can be difficult to be in fat-burning mode when your body is in fat-storage mode.
This is very, very good news. Type 2 diabetes develops over many years when you consistently consume more glucose and carbohydrates than the body can handle. The body produces insulin, signalling it to store glucose as fat. Eventually, the body becomes resistant to the effects of insulin, which leads to Type 2 diabetes, where blood glucose levels are higher.
Over many years in practice, I have seen people lose weight, and I should also say that while overweight and obesity are related to Type 2 diabetes, they are not synonymous. Some people can be overweight or obese without Type 2 diabetes, and some people have Type 2 diabetes without being overweight or obese. However, there is a significant degree of overlap. Additionally, we know that the rates of all three—overweight, obesity, and Type 2 diabetes—have risen significantly since the early 1980s with the introduction of low-fat dietary guidelines, something I have spoken about previously. The numbers are stark.
Over the years, I have seen people lose significant amounts of weight that their bodies need to lose, and their diabetes markers have dropped from above the cutoff to below it. The marker called glycated hemoglobin, or HbA1c has a diabetes cutoff of 6.5. I have seen people go from a level of 9-point-something to 7-point-something just by making dietary changes and losing weight. For some people, the improvement is so significant that if we had never seen their previous blood test results, we would not have known they had diabetes.
Whether we call it remission, cure, or something else is just jargon. Ultimately, for that person, it is a significant benefit. Most people whose blood sugar levels improve can reduce their medication, and some can stop it altogether. However, don’t do this without consulting your doctor and reviewing your blood test results.
Weight loss is not conceptually difficult. I know you may think, “If it’s so easy, why isn’t everyone doing it?” The challenge is not in understanding it but in execution. You don’t need to be a rocket scientist. You don’t need three degrees. You simply need to change your dietary patterns, consume fewer calories, and especially reduce refined carbohydrates. Additional exercise is also helpful.
Conceptually, it’s straightforward, but not everyone can manage it. People are human. This doesn’t make someone good or bad, right or wrong. It is what it is. But this research confirms what some have argued for years: how we take care of ourselves makes a massive difference.
The medical profession often gives lip service to lifestyle changes—diet and exercise are important—but quickly prescribes medication. There is a role for medication. It’s not right or wrong to take it if you need it and if it benefits you. But if you can reduce weight, change your diet, and bring your diabetes markers into the non-diabetic range without medication, that’s a really, really good thing. This doesn’t get a lot of attention, partly because not everyone will do it. However, the fact remains: some people can take control of their health and reverse their diabetes.
There is also an underlying issue with public health messaging. If people take care of their own health, universities and researchers might receive less funding. There is less of an incentive to promote lifestyle changes if researchers rely on government funding to study chronic diseases.
So, what are the key takeaways?
- Really good news: Potentially, 80% of people with Type 2 diabetes may be able to reverse or cure it by making dietary changes and losing weight. It won’t apply to everyone, and the amount of weight each person needs to lose will vary, but these numbers are encouraging.
- It doesn’t have to be difficult. The basics: reduce or eliminate refined carbohydrates, eat like your grandparents did—meat, fish, chicken, or vegetable proteins if that’s your preference—along with vegetables, drink mainly water, cut out high-calorie beverages, and exercise regularly.
- Good food still contains calories, so portion control matters. But if we focus on the basics and keep things simple, like those in this research study, individuals can take control of their health and improve it significantly.
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Dr Joe Kosterich – Doctor, Health Industry Consultant and Author
Doctor, speaker, author, and health industry consultant, Joe is WA State Medical Director for IPN, Clinical editor of Medical Forum Magazine, Medical Advisor to Medicinal Cannabis company Little Green Pharma and Course Chair, and writer for Health Cert. He is often called to give opinions in medico-legal cases, has taught students at UWA and Curtin Medical schools and been involved in post graduate education for over 20 years.
A regular on radio and TV, Joe has a podcast – Dr Joe Unplugged, has self- published two books and maintains a website with health information. He has extensive experience in helping businesses maintain a healthy workforce.
Past Chairman of Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association, current Vice President of Arthritis and Osteoporosis WA, Joe previously held senior positions in the Australian Medical Association and has sat on numerous boards.
