Type 2 Diabetes is seemingly becoming an epidemic in the United States. Millions of individuals are being diagnosed with the disease at younger and younger ages. What was once an adult-onset disease, is now being found even in children. Fortunately, in some cases, type 2 diabetes can be improved if a person loses weight and adopts a healthier lifestyle.
There was a study done at the University of California Los Angeles that found that a high fiber diet that is low in fat can help reverse the disease. The individuals in the study were put on the Pritikin diet. They consumed lots of fruits, whole grains and vegetables.
This type of diet is also commonly used by persons who suffer from high blood pressure and has shown to help lower it. This study was published in the Journal of Applied Physiology and showed that it significantly improved or reversed the Type 2 Diabetes in half of the study participants.
The study has not been without controversy. There are people, (including some diabetes experts), who believe that it is not possible to a reverse Type 2 Diabetes by lifestyle changes alone. Another problem with the study, some contend, is that although some individuals clinically no longer had diabetes, they still had physical damage, for example plaque in the arteries, related to the disease. This was unchanged even as their glucose levels improved. However, the authors of the study believe that there is some hope that if persons continue on the Pritikin diet (or one similar to it) they may also be able to reverse the damage that has been done to the various organs due to the diabetes.
Fifty percent of the individuals that went through the study were able to reverse their Type 2 Diabetes. Over 30 men were involved in study. All of them had Type 2 Diabetes and nearly half of them had metabolic syndrome. They were put on diets that had 70% of their calories coming from carbohydrates, 10% from fat and 15% to 20% from protein. The diet lasted for three weeks and the dramatic results were reported and penned in the Journal of Physiology.
Many experts in the field were absolutely astonished especially considering that the men were only on the diet for three weeks. Most medical research or common diabetes knowledge does not believe that Type 2 Diabetes can totally be reversed solely by a lifestyle changes. This study proves that this contention may not true. There are still others that believe that a change in diet (high fiber, low fat), exercise and weight loss can in fact “cure” the disease and decrease glucose levels.
While more study needs to be done, this discovery was extremely exciting and promising. Individuals who have the disease that are willing to lose weight, eat healthier and exercise may be able to not only significantly improve the disease but totally reverse it with these lifestyle changes which include a healthy diet.
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