# Has anyone Reversed their Diabetes or put on Remission? Wondering if it is possible for a Type 2?



## Smitha (Oct 23, 2017)

Hello everyone,

I am being diagnosed in July 2017 and still learning a lot everyday about Type 2 Diabetes.
Just wondering has anyone Reversed their Diabetes or put on Remission? Is it possible for a Type 2 to be non diabetic or put it on remission if they loose a lot of weight around pancreas and change their lifestyle.

Just wondering.......


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## Martin Canty (Oct 23, 2017)

I prefer to think of it as  being well controlled rather than cured/reversed/in remission.

I know, from experience, that if I relax the control that my BG will start to rise to levels that I find unacceptable (probably levels that are OK for other people).... Having said that I do allow myself the odd treat though my treats are not usually sugary as I'm just not into sweet stuff (caveat to that is Apple Pie).


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## Smitha (Oct 23, 2017)

Glad to hear your view on it. Thanks Martin.


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## Mark Parrott (Oct 23, 2017)

I am classed as 'resolved' by my diabetic nurse, whatever that really means.  I managed 3 HbA1c tests in a row in the non diabetic range.  This means I will no longer see the DN, but I do have to have annual blood tests for the rest of my life.  My insulin resistance has definitely improved, due to the fact that I have lost 4 stone.  If I eat high carb food, I still get spikes, but they don't last as long as they used too.  So I suppose I have technically reversed my diabetes in the fact that I have reduced to a minimum the chances of complications.  I have also never been on any meds since day one.


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## Smitha (Oct 23, 2017)

Mark Parrott said:


> I am classed as 'resolved' by my diabetic nurse, whatever that really means.  I managed 3 HbA1c tests in a row in the non diabetic range.  This means I will no longer see the DN, but I do have to have annual blood tests for the rest of my life.  My insulin resistance has definitely improved, due to the fact that I have lost 4 stone.  If I eat high carb food, I still get spikes, but they don't last as long as they used too.  So I suppose I have technically reversed my diabetes in the fact that I have reduced to a minimum the chances of complications.  I have also never been on any meds since day one.


Hello Mark, Congratulations and very happy to hear about your achievement. That is definitely a great job. Well done you. I hope you continue to bring your HbA1c in these ranges. I am surprised you were never on tabs inspite of having HbA1c of 86 initially. Did you opt for it or DN decided on it? I am just curious because I would like to bring my BG down and stop medication at some point.


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## HOBIE (Oct 23, 2017)

I have TWO of my very good friends OFF all there meds for T2. One of who was on insulin. Both ate miles better & took regular exorcize. Really good luck Smitha.


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## Martin Canty (Oct 23, 2017)

Smitha said:


> bring my BG down and stop medication at some point.


I have managed to stop my meds & have a FBG about 5.0 most mornings. Diet & exercise is the way to go (if you are able)... For me it's Low Carb & Yoga 3-4 times a week along with walking the dogs daily.... And occasional bike rides.


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## Amigo (Oct 23, 2017)

I’ve never taken medication and my levels have been under diabetic range since diagnosis. However I don’t think simply not being on meds is a sign that it’s been reversed because that’s how some of us manage it and know that levels could quickly rise again.

Significant weight loss, continued effort and losing visceral fat from around the organs can, I believe, actually reverse diabetes but only if the beta cells are still working reasonably well. Sometimes it’s a physiological thing that can’t be reversed completely,


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## Smitha (Oct 23, 2017)

HOBIE said:


> I have TWO of my very good friends OFF all there meds for T2. One of who was on insulin. Both ate miles better & took regular exorcize. Really good luck Smitha.


Thank you so much for your reply Hobie. It is very motivating and I shall try my max to be off meds. Diabetic nurse says I will be on meds forever but I am trying my best not to. I have lost around 20kgs already since June 2017.


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## Smitha (Oct 23, 2017)

Martin Canty said:


> I have managed to stop my meds & have a FBG about 5.0 most mornings. Diet & exercise is the way to go (if you are able)... For me it's Low Carb & Yoga 3-4 times a week along with walking the dogs daily.... And occasional bike rides.


That is great to know Martin. It is very motivating and something to look forward to. Way to go for your determination. Do you have your own meter or did the GP provide you one? I am still clueless. I have managed to loose around 20kg since June 2017.


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## Marsbartoastie (Oct 23, 2017)

If you have a significant amount of weight that you can lose and your organs co-operate...then with hard work and a big dollop of good luck you may be able to achieve a good outcome.  Whether it's remission, resolution or whatever...who cares?  The result is a better quality of life now and further down the line.


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## Smitha (Oct 23, 2017)

Amigo said:


> I’ve never taken medication and my levels have been under diabetic range since diagnosis. However I don’t think simply not being on meds is a sign that it’s been reversed because that’s how some of us manage it and know that levels could quickly rise again. Significant weight loss, continued effort and losing visceral fat from around the organs can, I believe, actually reverse diabetes but only if the beta cells are still working reasonably well. Sometimes it’s a physiological thing that can’t be reversed completely,


Hello Amigo, so nice to hear from you. I am trying my best and lost 20 kgs but I think as you said Visceral fat need to be gone and I am on it now. Have joined a gym and is continuing my walks. Hopefully at some point I can be off meds.


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## Smitha (Oct 23, 2017)

Marsbartoastie said:


> If you have a significant amount of weight that you can lose and your organs co-operate...then with hard work and a big dollop of good luck you may be able to achieve a good outcome.  Whether it's remission, resolution or whatever...who cares?  The result is a better quality of life now and further down the line.


Thanks a lot. You guys are so positive when compared to my Diabetic Nurse who should have been little positive atleast. I am trying my best to do whatever i can and reduce lot of weight. Thank you.


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## Ditto (Oct 23, 2017)

What I find fascinating is those people who have bariatric surgery. They've not yet lost their weight but I believe the diabetes is put into reverse. I wonder why? They need to do more research because I want to know.  

It's all about measuring, so you need a Codefree and the strips so you can see what spikes you and what doesn't. Decent amount of exercise, walking at least 30 mins a day. I feel I could reverse mine or put it on hold if only I would stick to my own advice and beat my food addiction. I hate having blurry eyes. Good luck Smitha. Knowledge is everything, keep reading these excellent people, I'm so impressed with the people on this forum. I don't know what I would have done without their help and support. Not that I'm listening at the minute but the info is there for when I can get a handle on my dire lifestyle.


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## Amigo (Oct 23, 2017)

Ditto said:


> What I find fascinating is those people who have bariatric surgery. They've not yet lost their weight but I believe the diabetes is put into reverse. I wonder why? They need to do more research because I want to know.
> 
> It's all about measuring, so you need a Codefree and the strips so you can see what spikes you and what doesn't. Decent amount of exercise, walking at least 30 mins a day. I feel I could reverse mine or put it on hold if only I would stick to my own advice and beat my food addiction. I hate having blurry eyes. Good luck Smitha. Knowledge is everything, keep reading these excellent people, I'm so impressed with the people on this forum. I don't know what I would have done without their help and support. Not that I'm listening at the minute but the info is there for when I can get a handle on my dire lifestyle.



At what point do those people having bariatric surgery ‘put it into reverse’ though Ditto? Bear in mind once they have the by-pass or band, the food intake decreases massively so they can’t keep eating carbs. Levels would drop at that point but I’d imagine it’s the actual weight loss that would ‘reverse’ things but only if the pancreas isn’t too badly affected.

People can still gain a lot of the weight loss back after bariatric surgery, my friend has.

Food addiction is a psychological issue too. My very overweight friend actually hated food and cooking!


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## Martin Canty (Oct 23, 2017)

Smitha said:


> Do you have your own meter or did the GP provide you one? I am still clueless.


I'm an Expat living in California, situation is different here but it's pretty standard to be prescribed one on DX (they trust us humble T2's to be able to understand the results & us it to our advantage), however I still had to pay for it & currently my test strips cost me about $18 for 100. Nowadays I test in the morning, when I'm feeling a little off or trying new foods. 
I do have several meters & have them stashed around the house or truck (pick-up) dating back to the days when I used to get Hypo's.


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## Mark Parrott (Oct 23, 2017)

Smitha said:


> Hello Mark, Congratulations and very happy to hear about your achievement. That is definitely a great job. Well done you. I hope you continue to bring your HbA1c in these ranges. I am surprised you were never on tabs inspite of having HbA1c of 86 initially. Did you opt for it or DN decided on it? I am just curious because I would like to bring my BG down and stop medication at some point.


I was given the choice & opted for no meds.  My positive results have shocked everyone at our surgery.  I saw one GP there recently about an unrelated issue.  He looked at my notes and just said, "sod that, look at this!". He couldn't believe how good my blood results were.


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## Marsbartoastie (Oct 23, 2017)

Mark Parrott said:


> I was given the choice & opted for no meds.  My positive results have shocked everyone at our surgery.  I saw one GP there recently about an unrelated issue.  He looked at my notes and just said, "sod that, look at this!". He couldn't believe how good my blood results were.





Ditto said:


> What I find fascinating is those people who have bariatric surgery. They've not yet lost their weight but I believe the diabetes is put into reverse. I wonder why? They need to do more research because I want to know.
> 
> It's all about measuring, so you need a Codefree and the strips so you can see what spikes you and what doesn't. Decent amount of exercise, walking at least 30 mins a day. I feel I could reverse mine or put it on hold if only I would stick to my own advice and beat my food addiction. I hate having blurry eyes. Good luck Smitha. Knowledge is everything, keep reading these excellent people, I'm so impressed with the people on this forum. I don't know what I would have done without their help and support. Not that I'm listening at the minute but the info is there for when I can get a handle on my dire lifestyle.



Having dieted and regained weight time and time again I found something that turned things around for me.  This presentation is quite long, but Dr Fung is an engaging speaker so stick with it.  The bottom line is that almost everything we've ever been told about losing weight was wrong.


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## Amigo (Oct 23, 2017)

Marsbartoastie said:


> Having dieted and regained weight time and time again I found something that turned things around for me.  This presentation is quite long, but Dr Fung is an engaging speaker so stick with it.  The bottom line is that almost everything we've ever been told about losing weight was wrong.



Thanks MBT, I’ll have a listen when I can get some peace and quiet.

As a matter of interest and cheeky inquisitiveness for which I hope you’ll forgive me, I’m fascinated as to how you started with a Hba of 101. At the risk of being accused of making stereotypical judgments, you don’t seem to fit the profile unless there’s a strong genetic disposition.


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## Marsbartoastie (Oct 23, 2017)

Amigo said:


> Thanks MBT, I’ll have a listen when I can get some peace and quiet.
> 
> As a matter of interest and cheeky inquisitiveness for which I hope you’ll forgive me, I’m fascinated as to how you started with a Hba of 101. At the risk of being accused of making stereotypical judgments, you don’t seem to fit the profile unless there’s a strong genetic disposition.



Unfortunately, I fitted the profile perfectly _and _had a strong family predisposition to T2...the perfect storm.


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## Amigo (Oct 23, 2017)

Marsbartoastie said:


> Unfortunately, I fitted the profile perfectly _and _had a strong family predisposition to T2...the perfect storm.



Interesting MBT. Hope my question wasn’t too intrusive. I certainly fitted the profile, family history, past acute pancreatitis, overweight, stressed and eating like an unsupervised toddler at a birthday party. Biggest surprise was only starting with a Hb of 52!  (Incidentally been 44, 41, 40 and now 42 without meds).


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## Marsbartoastie (Oct 23, 2017)

Amigo said:


> Interesting MBT. Hope my question wasn’t too intrusive. I certainly fitted the profile, family history, past acute pancreatitis, overweight, stressed and eating like an unsupervised toddler at a birthday party. Biggest surprise was only starting with a Hb of 52!  (Incidentally been 44, 41, 40 and now 42 without meds).


Nice consistent numbers Amigo.  Excellent work mate.


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## Ditto (Oct 23, 2017)

> At what point do those people having bariatric surgery ‘put it into reverse’ though


Apparently it was almost immediate, unless I got the wrong end of the stick. They hadn't lost the weight yet! 

Must go check out that link...


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## Smitha (Oct 24, 2017)

Ditto said:


> What I find fascinating is those people who have bariatric surgery. They've not yet lost their weight but I believe the diabetes is put into reverse. I wonder why? They need to do more research because I want to know.
> 
> It's all about measuring, so you need a Codefree and the strips so you can see what spikes you and what doesn't. Decent amount of exercise, walking at least 30 mins a day. I feel I could reverse mine or put it on hold if only I would stick to my own advice and beat my food addiction. I hate having blurry eyes. Good luck Smitha. Knowledge is everything, keep reading these excellent people, I'm so impressed with the people on this forum. I don't know what I would have done without their help and support. Not that I'm listening at the minute but the info is there for when I can get a handle on my dire lifestyle.



Glad to hear from you Ditto. I shall try and keep me educated.


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## Smitha (Oct 24, 2017)

Mark Parrott said:


> I was given the choice & opted for no meds.  My positive results have shocked everyone at our surgery.  I saw one GP there recently about an unrelated issue.  He looked at my notes and just said, "sod that, look at this!". He couldn't believe how good my blood results were.


So glad to hear about your results. Way to go Mark. That is a great achievement.


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## Smitha (Oct 24, 2017)

Thanks everyone. It is great to know that there are still chance of getting it under full control and hopefully that day is not far. I know each body is different and results vary. I am wondering whether your GP or DN provide your the testing meters and strips / should we request for one or all of you buy your own here in UK? Just wondering....thanks!


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## Mark Parrott (Oct 24, 2017)

I had do buy my own meter & strips.  My DN really wanted to prescribe me them but was not allowed.  She is a strong believer in self testing.


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## Smitha (Oct 24, 2017)

So is it that type 2 are not allowed to do self monitoring funded by NHS or something? I didnt know that. It is fine as we can always buy one. 




Mark Parrott said:


> I had do buy my own meter & strips.  My DN really wanted to prescribe me them but was not allowed.  She is a strong believer in self testing.[/QUOTE


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## Beck S (Oct 24, 2017)

From what I can gather Type 2 is a bit of a lottery for testing equipment depending on where you live.  I was lucky and just got the kit given to me when I was diagnosed by the DN, but a lot here haven't and have bought their own.

From my own experience I think I would always advocate self-testing if you can, because I've found it so valuable the last month and a half, and I don't think I'd have done so well without it.  You will see some people say you don't need it, and it's fine if it's worked for them, but I'd rather not wait for my HbA1c test every three months to see how I was doing.  And at least after a few months if you get a handle on it, then you can cut down your tests.  But at least you'll know.


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## Amigo (Oct 24, 2017)

Smitha said:


> So is it that type 2 are not allowed to do self monitoring funded by NHS or something? I didnt know that. It is fine as we can always buy one.



Unfortunately buying the strips can be prohibitively high for some of our unwaged members Smitha.


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## grovesy (Oct 24, 2017)

Even if they are prescribed don't always get many. 
There have even been reports of Type 1 having the number of strips limited.


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## Beck S (Oct 24, 2017)

Amigo said:


> Unfortunately buying the strips can be prohibitively high for some of our unwaged members Smitha.


They are a lot, especially if you really want to keep on top of your numbers.

My DN told me yesterday that they have problems with some surgeries prescribing the slow-release Metformin as it's more expensive than the usual, although they're both quite cheap.  If some won't even do that then I can see that they won't want to prescribe testing strips.


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## Smitha (Oct 24, 2017)

Beck S said:


> From what I can gather Type 2 is a bit of a lottery for testing equipment depending on where you live.  I was lucky and just got the kit given to me when I was diagnosed by the DN, but a lot here haven't and have bought their own.
> 
> From my own experience I think I would always advocate self-testing if you can, because I've found it so valuable the last month and a half, and I don't think I'd have done so well without it.  You will see some people say you don't need it, and it's fine if it's worked for them, but I'd rather not wait for my HbA1c test every three months to see how I was doing.  And at least after a few months if you get a handle on it, then you can cut down your tests.  But at least you'll know.


Good inputs Beck. I guess investing on a good meter is the key then.


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## Smitha (Oct 24, 2017)

Amigo said:


> Unfortunately buying the strips can be prohibitively high for some of our unwaged members Smitha.


Yeah I understand that. Wonder why NHS do not support those in need.....it is altogether a different debate.


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## Smitha (Oct 24, 2017)

grovesy said:


> Even if they are prescribed don't always get many.
> There have even been reports of Type 1 having the number of strips limited.


Oh really? That's a shame then.....as I believe being Type 1 you need to know what your levels are always....wonder why such a practice exist among Gps.


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## Smitha (Oct 24, 2017)

Beck S said:


> They are a lot, especially if you really want to keep on top of your numbers.
> 
> My DN told me yesterday that they have problems with some surgeries prescribing the slow-release Metformin as it's more expensive than the usual, although they're both quite cheap.  If some won't even do that then I can see that they won't want to prescribe testing strips.


Beck...rightly said as I was just prescribed Metformin instead of my usual SR and i just asked them to change it as i was on it always with my previous doctors back home for which I paid and it is not that expensive too. Wonder why they do that.....let us see what they come up with tomorrow. Really annoying..


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## grovesy (Oct 24, 2017)

Smitha said:


> Oh really? That's a shame then.....as I believe being Type 1 you need to know what your levels are always....wonder why such a practice exist among Gps.


Many have to get their hospital teams to get them to increase.


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## Amigo (Oct 24, 2017)

Smitha said:


> Beck...rightly said as I was just prescribed Metformin instead of my usual SR and i just asked them to change it as i was on it always with my previous doctors back home for which I paid and it is not that expensive too. Wonder why they do that.....let us see what they come up with tomorrow. Really annoying..



There’s a lively debate taking place on here on the subject on supplying type 2’s with testing strips at the moment Smitha;

https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/testing-strips-meters-for-type-2s.69839/


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## Smitha (Oct 24, 2017)

grovesy said:


> Many have to get their hospital teams to get them to increase.


:-(


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## Smitha (Oct 24, 2017)

Amigo said:


> There’s a lively debate taking place on here on the subject on supplying type 2’s with testing strips at the moment Smitha;
> 
> https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/testing-strips-meters-for-type-2s.69839/


Thanks a lot. Shall chk it out.


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## HOBIE (Oct 24, 2017)

Smitha said:


> Good inputs Beck. I guess investing on a good meter is the key then.


Knowledge is very good. Have you heard about the Freestyle Libre. Expensive but the info you get is very good. They give you graphs etc right through 24hrs for 2 weeks.  Good info


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## everydayupsanddowns (Oct 24, 2017)

Smitha said:


> Good inputs Beck. I guess investing on a good meter is the key then.


For those forum members self-funding, the Codefree seems to offer reliable results with a cheaper strip cost.


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## Drummer (Oct 26, 2017)

My numbers are normal for blood glucose and Hba1c - I don't take any medication, just don't eat the foods which increase my blood glucose too much. 
I dropped my numbers first and now I am thinking more about losing some weight. It is so much easier to lose weight when the symptoms of diabetes have been suppressed - far more energy less hunger though after I took Metformin and a statin for a few weeks I was totally wrecked, and I have taken ALA to try to get rid of the dreadful aches and pains in my muscles and joints, which seems to have succeeded. I stopped taking them when the loss of memory frightened me. That has not come back properly, though it has improved.
I don't bother testing now as I know what not to eat, I do check once in a while, just to be sure. my last pre dinner test was 4.8mmol/l and after dinner was 7.6mmol/l - those were after a bit of over indulgence at lunchtime, then a few days later after eating melon, so they were probably higher than normal for me now.


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