How Losing Weight Can Reverse Type 2 Diabetes

How losing weight can reverse Type 2 diabetes

Nearly 4m people in the UK have Type 2 diabetes and numbers are rising all the time.
However, the condition is mostly preventable and can even be reversed, as the stories of these two Huddersfield women illustrate
INSULIN-dependent diabetic Carmel Hewson from Cowlersley has seen her condition go into remission – by losing 5 1/2 stones in weight and adopting a healthier diet.
After years of ill health, 56-year-old Carmel says she’s now on the point of dispensing with insulin injections altogether. What’s more, she no longer needs medication for high blood pressure or painful acid reflux, can climb stairs without being breathless and has ‘cured’ a bad knee.
“I feel so much healthier and happier,” she says, “it’s the best thing I’ve ever done.”
Carmel, a mother of two, was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes 14 years ago. At her heaviest she weighed 16 stones 6lbs (104kgs) and was a size 20. She’d tried dieting but found the weight always crept back. But in June 2015, alarmed by health concerns, she and her daughter Joanne, 32, joined the Milnsbridge Slimming World group and began a weight-loss journey together. (Joanne has gone from a size 16 to 10/12).
“I was on 100 units of insulin a day,” explained Carmel, “but now I’m down to 20 and my doctor says I could come off it altogether in the forseeable future. I know people with diabetes who won’t join a slimming club because they think they can’t do it, but you can.”
Carmel admits that she knew losing weight could put her diabetes into remission, but, like many people who are overweight, she had Continue reading

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Dr. Jason Fung Shares The Perfect Treatment for Diabetes and Weight Loss

What is the perfect treatment that can cure type 2 diabetes and lead to effortless weight loss?
Eating better and losing weight is about so much more than a number on the scale or fitting into your skinny jeans.
I’m on a mission to help as many people as I can lose weight, feel better and avoid the devastating long-term effects of Type 2 Diabetes.
I became acutely aware of the dangers of diabetes just after graduation from college when I took a job as a medical records coder. Day after day, I read through the medical records of just discharged patients to assign ICD-9-CM codes to their diagnoses and procedures.
The list of complications associated with diabetes is staggering and includes: ketoacidosis, renal disease, ophthalmic (eye) disease, neurologic (nerve) disease, peripheral circulatory disease and can lead to the need for dialysis and limb amputation when not well managed.
When I hear people say, “I have diabetes” as casually as they might say, “I have a cold,” I’m overcome by a sense of sadness and dread at what lies ahead for so many.
It’s what makes me so passionate about Weight Watchers and motivates me to keep learning and experimenting with healthy eating and weight management strategies.
I want people to live happy, healthy lives, brimming with energy and vitality so they can experience their best lives. So that they can play with their kids and grandkids, move easily, travel freely, love fully. So they don’t miss out on a moment of all the goodness their future has in store for them.
There’s no one right way to lose weight. You’ve got to f Continue reading

Type 2 diabetes could be affecting half a million unaware Australians

Up to 500,000 Australians may have type 2 diabetes without knowing it, putting them at risk of devastating health consequences, health experts have warned.
Due to low screening rates across the country, one in three people are unaware they have type two diabetes and are being left vulnerable to serious health issues.
Type 2 diabetes is the leading cause of preventable blindness, limb amputation and end-stage kidney disease in Australia.
Diabetes Australia CEO Greg Johnson said only five per cent of Australians over 40 have had a check for type 2 diabetes in the last two years.
"The high figures are really startling and alarming," he said.
"The critical thing here is many people actually have type two diabetes for up to seven years before it's diagnosed and during that time it could be silently doing damage to your body.
"If we detect it early and if we treat it we can actually prevent most or all of the complications."
Mr Johnson said people often ask what symptoms to look out for but he stressed one cannot wait to experience symptoms.
"It's often silent but doing damage to all the organs in the body so people need to have regular checks.
Diabetes NSW and ACT chief executive Sturt Eastwood said one in three people with type 2 diabetes have not been diagnosed even though diagnosis is simple.
"I really recommend you add a diabetes test your next visit to your GP," Mr Eastwood said.
"And if you are over 50 or you have anyone in your family with diabetes I would recommend you start that process today."
Belinda Nakota was diagnosed with diabetes 15 years ago when a urinary tract Continue reading

Patient Voices: Type 2 Diabetes

Nearly 400 million people around the world have Type 2 diabetes , including about 28 million in the United States. Of those, as many as eight million dont know they have it. Type 2 diabetes can wreak havoc on the entire body, affecting everything from hearing and vision to sexual function, mental health and sleep. It is the leading cause of blindness, amputations and kidney failure, and it can triple the risk for heart attack and stroke. But with vigilant monitoring, a person can keep Type 2 diabetes under control and live well. Five men and women speak about living with diabetes.
Do you or does someone you know have Type 2 diabetes? Tell us about how you manage your condition.
Larry Brandwein, 56, Brooklyn
Larry Brandwein, a former special education teacher, was formally given a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes at the age of 35, but he suspected he had it well before then.
Every morning, Mr. Brandwein injects himself with insulin to help his body maintain a healthy level of blood sugar. But routine monitoring is a challenge, and he often copes with drops in blood sugar levels. When that happens, Mr. Brandwein gets dizzy and must immediately have something sweet, like orange juice. Too much orange juice, though, can cause a sudden rise in his blood sugar. Such extreme swings can be very damaging to the body.
Five years ago, Mr. Brandwein began to have trouble walking, a result of peripheral neuropathy , a common complication of diabetes that causes pain and numbness in the extremities. This pain, made worse by foot ulcers, forced him to retire from teaching.
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Disability tax credit rules unfair to some diabetics, advocates say

Diabetes advocates are the latest group to complain that the way the federal disability tax credit is being applied is unfair.
On Monday CBC News reported that parents of children with a rare disorder called phenylketonuria, or PKU, are frustrated that some families are approved while others are not.
By contrast, according to the Canadian Diabetes Association, most children with Type 1 diabetes do qualify for the federal benefit.
However, once they turn 18, many of them are cut off.
Canadian Diabetes Association spokeswoman Joan King says her group is calling on the federal government to allow all Type 1 diabetics access to the tax credit.
"The fact that they're perceived to be independent of adult support seems to be the clincher but they still have to manage a 24/7 complicated and demanding disease," she said.
The sticking point seems to be a strict requirement that patients spend at least 14 hours per week administering a life-sustaining therapy — in this case, insulin.
King says children are generally approved because the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) adds up the time spent by both parents and children.
Another problem is that only certain activities count, King says. For example, tracking carbohydrates and managing blood-sugar lows do not.
"There are many activities that aren't permitted. And when we calculate it's a 24-7 complicated disease to manage that the CRA doesn't permit," she said.
The association submitted its recommendation to change the rules to the federal government earlier this year.
With files from the CBC's Jennifer Lee
To encourage thoughtful and resp Continue reading