Old news, but people may be able to “cure” themselves of type-2 diabetes by going on a radical 800-calorie-a-day soup and shake diet. Previous research has indicated that the disease can be temporarily reversed in this way. Now a study has suggested that the recovery can be permanent – provided the weight loss is sufficiently dramatic, and maintained.

Scientists at Newcastle and Glasgow Universities tracked 298 diabetics who were put on an ultra-low-calorie food-replacement diet for between three to five months. After a year, 46% of them were in remission, and after two, 70% of this group were still in remission. Those who were still in remission after two years had lost an average of 15.5kg (two-and-a-half stone) initially and had put 4.3kg back on after a year, while those who relapsed after a year had lost 12kg initially and regained 7.1kg. The researchers think that dramatic weight loss reduces levels of fat in the pancreas, allowing it to recover the ability to produce insulin. (The Week, 23 March 2019).

My comment: I was pre-diabetic myself until my doctor read the riot act. I cut down on sweet things and took exercise much more seriously. At one point I weighed over 200 lbs, with an A1C of 6.2; now I have been 160 lbs. for several years, with an A1C of under 6. One can do it if one really wants to!