Insulin dependent type II needs role model

insulin-dependent
(Dennis Gilbert) #1

There are many books and podcasts where Diabetics type II reverse their diseases.
I recently read Goodbye needles and pills, and realized the dearth of personal stories of struggles and successes for the insulin dependent.

  1. how is it determined that one is insulin dependent?
  2. how is it determined that one is really insulin resistant?
  3. Is the problem with the pancreas or the stuffed cells? How do you know?
  4. How much harder is it for the ID to attain ketosis?
    How about a new thread that is exactly that? “ID type 2’s LCHF”
    and Carl, find some more guests who can speak directly to us on this.
#2

It was my understanding that “Insulin Dependent” referred to Type 1 diabetes.

I am a type 2 diabetic that used to use insulin and metformin. No longer.

(bulkbiker) #3

Get tested… Fasting insulin and fasted blood glucose readings can be used to calculate IR. Also will tell you a lot about whether you are over producing insulin “classic T2” or are an under producer which could imply LADA or very slow onset T1. These tests should be done from the start but rarely are.

#4

I keep a food diary with “Stupid Simple” . It calculates your macros. It also teaches you what is in the food you are eating. It keeps you honest.

#5

My mom has had diabetes two most of her life. She has controlled it “somewhat” by limiting sugar. However, docs did not acknowledge carbs. So, she also had high blood pressure. We never salted our food growing up. This whole thing created terrible eating habits and eating disorders. Mom eventually got dimentia. She is 100 without a mind.
I was headed for diabetes 2 also. Got a baseline A1C blood test. I started Keto and within 2 months, reversed the direction. I am now no longer pre-diabetes. I have been doing this for almost 11 months and will have another blood work up next week. I guarantee my numbers will be much lower. I am almost 72. My mind is much clearer, I am energetic and have lost 20 lbs. I am now at goal weight. I have only one medication for gerd that I have been on since I was 45 and I am weaning myself off of that. For me, it is like a miracle. It is like getting out of “diet jail”.

(Bunny) #6

Like this?

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(Christins) #7

I cannot answer all Your questions specifically but I can tell you about my experience. My husband is a type 2 diabetic. He is 56 and was diagnosed at 35. Since I am almost exclusively the cook, I took all the dietary classes with him. The guidelines were those set by the ADA & AHA which is to basically reduce carbs somewhat and continue with a low fat diet but carbs still made up the majority of his diet. Recent changes in the guidelines allow for sugar sweets just smaller portions. He struggled for years but was unable to control his bs. He began on metformin but was insulin dependent by age 42. In the last 8 years he began having the health problems typical with diabetes, peripheral aterial disease, heart disease, kidney complications, and began showing symptoms in his eyes. 4 years ago he was had a heart attack, bypass surgery and was fighting to save his lower left leg from amputation with diabetic sores on both feet. I truly thought he was dying in front of my eyes. After lots of research i found the Keto diet online. Its claims seemed too miraculous to be true but encouraged by his wound specialist doctor, 6 months after bypass surgery, I did a pantry purge and the first day of Keto made breakfast of bacon and eggs cooked in butter with shaking hands still not convinced that this would not speed up his already decline.

2 years later his diabetes is reversed. His primary doctor has taken him off insulin (previously 5 injections a day), metformin, and lipitor. He has lost 70 lbs, his eyes are clear, kidneys look great, triglycerides and bad cholesterol are down, good chol is up, and his feet are pink and healthy and he still has both his legs. He is active, walks everywhere, and enjoys going to the gym again. I too have lost weight, and both of us are free of joint inflammation and no water retention.

One of the biggest benefits is he is no longer tied to the ups and downs of blood glucose. No highs requiring fast-acting insulin and no lows required orange juice or candy. He eats when he is hungry and that’s it. He can fast all day and feel great.

I’m not saying this is true for everyone but for us it has been nothing short of a miracle. He has his life back and I have my husband back. We are keto lifers!

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #8

  1. Usually, they decide you need insulin by what your fasting glucose level is. To my mind, giving insulin to a Type II diabetic is equivalent to pouring gasoline on a fire, but there we are.

  2. By the time your fasting glucose goes high enough for them to decide you need insulin, you are pretty clearly insulin-resistant. But the most accurate diagnostic is an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), which takes several hours of sitting around having your insulin measured in response to a dose of glucose. It’s time-consuming and expensive, so they don’t often do it. However, Dr. Joseph Kraft, who pioneered this test, believed that it could predict insulin resistance and incipient diabetes 20 years earlier than waiting for fasting glucose to rise.

  3. In Type I diabetes, the problem is that the body’s immune system has destroyed the cells in the pancreas that secrete insulin. In Type II diabetes, the cells are so full of glucose/glycogen and/or triglycerides (depending on the cell type) that they have down-regulated their insulin receptors, thus requiring the pancreas to secrete ever-larger quantities of insulin to get glucose out of the bloodstream. In Type III diabetes (Alzheimer’s disease), the problem is insulin-resistance in the brain interfering with proper glucose metabolism (which is why ketones often help, since ketone metabolism often still functions, at least in the early stages of the disease).

  4. If you are taking insulin, you need to co-ordinate reducing the dosage with your doctor, when you embark on a ketogenic diet. Otherwise, you run the risk of causing hypoglycemic episodes, which at best are no fun and at worst can be dangerous and even fatal.

(Dennis Gilbert) #9

I nearly come to tears with joy for you two. God has brought your story to my heart, being the encouragement I seek.

(Dennis Gilbert) #10

Thank you all for your input…most helpful…all of it… My puzzle continues…
14 months low carb…Ketosis maybe once in a while…intermittent fasting…was using 850 metformin night and morning each, and 16 units Lantus morning. A week ago, I stopped both. fasted and watched my blood sugar rise during the day and into the next day. I drew the line at 250 and used insulin 32 units Friday morning. this Saturday morning 81! 2 eggs, 2 sausage patties, 1/2 avocado, cheese. 2 hours later 171 blood sugar! I choose to not eat anything until it subsides. at 4.5 hours post prandial…175 bs. My liver wants to deliver glucose into the blood stream, evidently.
Last Monday 13,000 steps and 12 mile bike ride. and IF, I hit trace BHB! I was thrilled for about 5 hours. Next day, back to the normal “out of control”. Too crazy making for this 75 year old, (too old for Virta) 168 lbs 74", Arizonian. See new Dr. Tuesday…

(JohnnyD) #11

What an inspirational story! Thank you for sharing. I’ve experienced much the same thing as your husband, although my history with T2 began back in the 1980s. As soon as I adopted an Atkins WOE, my weight dropped as did my diabetes markers. Through the years I’ve yo-yo’d between LFHC “heart healthy” diets and LCHF diets. The low-fat high-carb diets always put pounds on and increased A1c numbers. Best wishes to you both and thanks for sharing. Johnny

(Christins) #12

Took a while for hubby too. Blood sugar has so many factors weighing in on it. Insulin resistance doesn’t go away overnight. Keep at it.