Diabetes: cure through starvation
All content is checked by medical journalists.Eating a maximum of 700 kilocalories a day - this apparently reverses type 2 diabetes in many patients. As part of a study, the eight-week starvation diet normalized blood sugar levels in 40 percent of the participants. And even in the long term.
Getting enough exercise and eating well - a healthy lifestyle can prevent type 2 diabetes from developing. In some cases it even causes the metabolism to return to normal. So far, however, only a few diabetics have succeeded in doing this. A new study now shows that even a radical diet can work wonders.
Drastic fasting cure
30 patients who had been suffering from type 2 diabetes for at least half a year and a maximum of 23 years took part in the study. They were given a diet food in liquid form for eight weeks, plus low-calorie vegetables. In total, the subjects consumed a maximum of 700 kilocalories per day.
The drastic fasting cure was successful: the participants lost an average of a good 14 kilograms of body weight, from an average of 98.0 to 83.8 kg. Above all, however, the blood sugar levels of many participants stabilized. Twelve of them then had a fasting blood sugar value of less than 126 mg / dl - without taking any medication. Values between 100 and 125 mg / dl are still regarded as metabolically disturbed, but no longer as diabetic. Fasting blood glucose values below 100 not mg / dl are classified as normal.
Stable weight, stable blood sugar
The eight strict diet weeks were followed by a six-month stabilization phase with reduced calorie intake. This was also successful: on average, the participants didn't even gain a kilo during this time. And the blood sugar levels also remained stable in those test subjects for whom they had normalized. In addition, another participant achieved fasting blood sugar levels below 126 during this time.
Early intervention is worth it
The study also showed that type 2 diabetes can be reversed, especially if it has not been around for too long. The participants with normalized values had been diabetic for an average of 3.8 years. It is therefore worth taking action as soon as possible after the diagnosis. Those whose sugar levels hadn't responded so well to the program had type 2 diabetes for an average of 9.8 years. In addition, with an average of 52 years, the responders were on average a good eight years younger than their counterparts who benefited less (59.9 years). After all, they too could look forward to less fat in the liver and increased insulin sensitivity.
"Type 2 diabetes is a potentially reversible condition," the authors write. However, this requires the willingness to severely restrict yourself in your diet.
Healing through gastric surgery
Another, even more drastic, way to get rid of type 2 diabetes is gastric bypass. Studies have shown that overweight people treated in this way not only lose considerable weight, but also often develop a normal blood sugar metabolism again. This is often the case when the weight loss due to the operation is still small. Scientists have not yet been able to conclusively clarify why this is so.
Source: Sarah Steven et al: Weight Stability in Type 2 Diabetes: Pathophysiologic Changes in Responders and Nonresponders, Published online before print March 21, 2016, doi: 10.2337 / dc15-1942, Diabetes Care March 21, 2016
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