Can Diabetes be Reversed?

"Diabetes Reversal should be a goal in the management of Type 2 Diabetes." - Professor Taylor, Dr. Stevens & Dr. Lim, Newcastle University

Type 2 diabetes is regarded as an irreversible condition. My grandmother became diabetic when she turned forty years old. Her doctors said she needs to be on medications for life, but after 30 more years, she experienced significant diabetes reversal in just ten days of plant-based eating! For decades, she tried eating bitter gourd, methi seeds with buttermilk, jamun seed powder, lots of water through the day, long walks - but she still faced increasing sugar levels,more medications, and risk of  complications. After thirty years of suffering, when she adopted a whole food plant based diet, she got rid of 90% of her medications in ten days flat. Her sugar levels dropped to normal for the first time in years. She had started reversing diabetes.

This is just the story of one diabetic. However, thousands of diabetic patients all over the world have been documented to have successfully completely or partially reversed diabetes. Read on to find out how.

Diabetes Reversal as a Treatment Goal

Diabetes Reversal is not just possible, but it should be a goal in the management of Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Reversal is when your fasting blood sugar is less than 110 mg/dL or HbA1C is less than 6.1% without any medications or insulin. Diabetes reversal programs are scientific, structured programs that encourage participants to speak with their doctors, especially for reducing medications!

How did diabetes reversal programs work?

We have known for decades that you can treat diabetes by extreme diet control. In the 1980s, gastric bypass surgery for diabetes was pioneered, specifically for morbidly obese patients with diabetes. Take your stomach out of the equation and you end up losing your appetite, but you might have a 99% chance of losing excess weight and reversing diabetes within one year!

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Surgery & Diet for Diabetes Reversal

Do you really need the surgery, though? What if you just eat less food? Well, that works, too! An intensive lifestyle therapy with a low calorie diet and walking helped seventy‑five percent of the young adults in Bengaluru with newly diagnosed type 2 DM achieve remission of diabetes within one year and almost all of them managed to stay that way after two years into the program, which is saying a lot!

Do Low Calorie Diets Reduce Mortality?

But, does this mean less mortality? Even though weight loss can help you achieve you achieve a lower weight, better fitness, smaller waist size and lower HbA1C, a low calorie diet alone do not seem to reduce risk of heart attack or stroke.

Why? Because it does not improve your LDL cholesterol. Although you are eating less food, it is not necessarily healthier food. Better quantity, but not better quality. When you improve quality of food, you can reduce weight, reverse diabetes AND reduce mortality risk, all without severe portion control and quantity restrictions!

Photo Credit: megspl

Understanding Calorie Density Helps Reverse Diabetes

Whole plant foods are so calorically dilute, they help you lose weight without severe portion control or the need for calorie counting, even if you eat more than before. Compared to the diet recommended by the American Diabetes Association, a plant based diet showed much better, quicker reductions in HbA1C, weight and cholesterol levels. A whole food plant based diet is centered around whole unprocessed plant foods, such as vegetables, nuts, dals, whole grains, spices and fruits. Even mangoes!

Whenever she meets anyone with diabetes, she promptly sits them down and takes them through the amazing transformation she experienced when she adopted a plant-based diet. The sparkle in her eyes say it all.

At NutritionScience.in, we have helped hundreds of patients reverse diabetes partially and completely. Lower blood sugar with lesser medications. That’s the power of healthy eating. Sign up for our free 21 day Plant-based Kickstart to get started with a Whole Food Plant Based Diet from the comfort of your home.