Reversing Type 2 Diabetes
Reversing type 2 diabetes is possible if you can improve insulin sensitivity. If people that suffer from the disease can get their HbA1c below 6%, without taking medication, they have successfully resolved their diabetes and entered remission. With good health practices, you can improve your all-around health through a very rewarding process.
Low Calorie Diets
Low calories diets have caused remission in 90% of trial patients who have used radical diet change as opposed to suppressing effects with medication. This is according to a study that links weight loss with reversing type 2 diabetes. Experts believe avoiding long-term weight gain is linked with a reduced incidence, but can you really reverse type 2 diabetes?
Diabetes On The Rise
Fat accumulation can prevent the pancreas from functioning optimally, which in turn can increase the likelihood of getting type 2 diabetes. Everything points to diet as the main determinant, especially considering type 2 diabetes is soaring in correlation with the obesity epidemic. New initiatives are focusing on addressing the underlying cause of the condition, rather than managing the symptoms.
The Dawn Phenomenon
Type 2 diabetes is associated with the dawn phenomenon, which causes a hormonal imbalance prior to waking up from sleep. Diabetics continue to experience high fasting glucose levels as the day goes on, but extensive research is being conducted to counteract the effects. There are various methods to prevent high blood sugar levels in the morning, including:
- Avoiding carbohydrates before bed
- Adjusting your insulin injections
- Switching to a different medication
- Taking insulin before bed rather than after dinner
- Use an insulin pump to administer extra insulin in the morning
Reducing Weight
Weight loss reduces fat in the pancreas and liver and allows the body to return to normal functioning. Weight loss has been seen to not just aid the management of type 2 diabetes, but in some cases it reversed it entirely. Research suggests the number of people with type 2 diabetes has quadrupled in 35 years, and projections suggest numbers will rise from 422 million in 2014, to 642 million by 2040.
Addressing Your Diet
In the early stages of addressing your diet, you don’t have to increase physical activity. But you will want to include activity over time. Trials presented at the International Diabetes Federation Congress in Abu Dhabi suggested half the participants who lost an average of 22 kg reverted to a non-diabetic state. A high proportion of these people were aged from 20 to 65, and had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes within the past six years.
The remission group were compared to a control group who didn’t adopt a low-calorie diet. Only 4% of the control group achieved remission. Effectively addressing your diet involves an intake of 825 to 853 calories per day for three to five months. After completing this difficult process, you can slowly introduce more calories from two to eight weeks after. A combination of cognitive therapy and exercise works well in accordance with a low calorie diet.
Real Results
Even when you have had type 2 diabetes for six years, reversing the effects is feasible. In contrast with other approaches, the low calorie method involves long-term maintenance of weight loss through diet and exercise. Though you might not be cured, your quality of life will definitely improve. The biggest challenge is long-term avoidance of weight gain, which brings many health benefits with it.