Copyright © REVERSE DIABETES |
Chandos Street, St Leonards, 2065 NSW, Australia
Caution
This program is very effective at reducing your weight, blood pressure, and blood sugar level. Please consult with your treating doctor before changing your
diet and do not start, stop, or change medication without professional medical advice. This website is not intended to take the place of personalised medical
care or treatment and must not be taken as medical advice.
Disclaimer & Results
To meet our definition of genuine type 2 diabetes reversal, a number of criteria must be met to achieve non-diabetic range blood sugar levels. These include;
(a) not requiring any diabetes medications or insulin to be taken. (b) achieving normal range blood sugar levels as measured by 3 blood tests; HbA1c test, the 2
hour glucose tolerance test (GTT) and a fasting blood sugar test. It is only possible to reverse type 2 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes and type 1.5 (LADA) diabetes
cannot be reversed and will always require insulin. A small proportion of type 2 diabetes cannot be reversed when insulin production has become insufficient.
Results achieved can vary between individuals and depend on many factors, such as degree of compliance with a coaching program, pre-existing conditions,
severity of existing conditions and the rate a coaching program is implemented.
Refund Policy
We will refund all coaching fees if a client does not achieve improvement in their type 2 diabetes as measured by the 3 diabetes blood tests, provided the
agreed coaching program is followed and is verified.
Evidence/Medical Support
Can type 1 diabetes be reversed? Does the LiMe program apply to type 1 diabetes?
High levels of insulin, even with normal blood sugar levels, are very harmful long term, causing cardiovascular disease amongst many others. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, strongly linked to dietary risk factors, including dairy protein consumption and it will always require insulin therapy. Type 1.5 is similar but onsets in late adulthood and more slowly.
*The results achieved require a customised plan based on the health of each participant and will depend entirely on program compliance and completion.
Do I have to become vegan or vegetarian to reverse diabetes?
We understand some people have eaten animal foods t
We understand some people have eaten animal foods their whole life and giving them up totally would feel like deprivation and just seem unrealistic. The evidence is that the more the diet is based on a variety of plant-based foods, the faster type 2 diabetes will reverse. If you are happy with steady progress in the right direction and are willing to slowly change your diet, we can work with that and can include some animal foods in your program. Just keep in mind, the reversal will be faster and longer lasting the more the food is plant based. You may be surprised how hard it is to tell some plant based dishes apart from their animal based versions, when our food coaches show you how.
What diet is the LiMe Program based on?
The focus is on eating whole foods that are minimally processed, contain no harmful additives, are high in fibre and are nutrient dense. That means they are rich in plant based foods, vary in fat, complex carbohydrate content and protein. We don’t believe any one diet is the best for everyone.
By drawing from these various diets we can create personalised eating plans that will suit just about anyone's preferences. We also create low Glycemic Load (GI) meals that prevent blood sugar spikes in the early stages of the program when insulin resistance is still high and a client is very sensitive to carbohydrates and sugars.
Is the LiMe Program based on using low carb/high fat or ketogenic (keto) diets?
They are the exact opposite of what people living with diabetes should be eating long term. The problem is that in the short term their effects can be deceptive and they appear to work. People often lose weight, reduce blood glucose levels and may even reduce medications.
Type 2 diabetes is not a condition caused by excess carbohydrates, as is commonly believed. The false logic is that because carbohydrates break down into sugars in the blood and because diabetes is a condition of high blood sugars, avoiding carbs, reduces sugars and fixes diabetes. It appears logical at first glance. The only problem is, that although it is not immediately obvious, diabetes is mainly caused by excess fat, not sugar.
Excess fat harms in 2 ways.
Excess fat accumulates in the muscle and liver cells and causes insulin-resistance, which means the insulin-receptors become de-sensitised to insulin and when that happens, blood glucose can't get into the cells where it is needed for energy. It stays in the bloodstream, giving high sugar readings-one of a set of metabolic markers for diabetes.
Excess fat also causes the pancreas' insulin-producing cells to fail over time. As excess fat accrues in the pancreas, it releases inflammatory chemicals that damage the insulin- producing cells, causing them to fail over time, leading to insufficient insulin-production. This is very briefly why a high fat diet is the last thing needed to treat type 2 diabetes.
So why does a high fat /keto diet appear to work?
If you drastically reduce carbs and replace them with fat, which does not convert into blood sugars like carbohydrates do, very little insulin is needed and the diabetes condition seems improved. However, in the background, the high fat diet is worsening insulin-resistance and harming pancreatic function and eventually diabetes will return and be much more difficult to manage due to the damage done. A glucose tolerance test (GTT) will soon show that the high fat or keto diet is not working. The HbA1c test alone can be very misleading on its own as it does not show the high's and low's in levels or show the degree of insulin resistance.
This briefly explains why low carb or keto type diets may seem to work work in the short term but are very harmful long term to a diabetic’s health.
For a fully referenced, in-depth explanation of why keto diets are not the answer to diabetes, read this great article by our friends in the United States that run the Mastering Diabetes program over there. It busts some of the myths that ketogenic diet marketers claim as facts and is really worth reading if you are thinking the keto diet is a good option to deal with your diabetes.
Does the LiMe Program entail counting calories, portion control or counting carbs (dieting)?
What exactly does it mean when you use the term ‘diabetes reversal’? How do you reverse diabetes?
Sometimes, this is just not possible, as in cases of type 1 and 1.5 diabetes, or in rare type 2 situations where the pancreas’ beta cells are permanently damaged and secrete insufficient amounts of insulin to control blood glucose levels without some exogenous insulin-therapy.
The goal is to restore insulin-sensitivity and reverse insulin-resistance which is a realistic goal for most people with type 2 diabetes. The evidence is simply overwhelming that the more the long term way of eating moves towards nutrient dense foods with a substantial part being plant based, the better the outcomes. However, please remember that this is a permanent lifestyle change to ensure symptoms don’t return.
My doctor is sceptical and unsupportive of lifestyle medicine programs. Can you help me in this situation?
Many doctors have a medication centred approach to diabetes management and most have minimal nutrition education, but if they examine the evidence we provide with your coaching plan, it should be obvious which approach works best long term. Keep in mind too, that most doctors are not reimbursed adequately by insurers or public health systems to deliver lifestyle advice. Unfortunately, the reimbursement schedules encourage short, 15 minute consultations and financially penalise long consultations.
Please note that if you are on medications, it is essential that you have a qualified doctor supervising and adjusting your medications. This program is very effective and medications will need reduction as your health improves.
Why don’t doctors suggest the Lifestyle Medicine approach?
There are 2 main reasons why they don’t:
Firstly, most doctor
There are 2 main reasons why they don’t:
Firstly, most doctors have no training in or knowledge of Medical Nutrition Therapy. In Australia, for example, they typically receive just two hours of nutrition education in their six years of medical school.
The 2nd challenge that doctors face is that they are poorly reimbursed by public health systems or insurers for providing Lifestyle Medicine-oriented services. These services take a substantial amount of time to deliver. Unfortunately, public health systems and private insurers currently offer very little incentive to time poor doctors to provide their patients with the support and education that is needed in the early stages of diabetes. We are filling that gap while working with doctors and other health professionals.
So, don’t be surprised that your doctor is not offering anything other than very general advice on lifestyle measures and medications.
My doctor says that I will avoid diabetes complications like blindness and kidney failure, by tightly controlling my blood sugar numbers with medications. Why worry about all this healthy lifestyle stuff?
Worryingly, medications previously thought to reduce the risk of heart attacks, are now appearing to actually cause them in the long term. Statin drugs are a commonly prescribed medication to reduce that risk. Some statins are now being blamed for increasing heart attack risk.
Read this 2017 newsletter article by Dr John McDougall MD, a board-certified doctor in California, with about 40 years’ experience, analysing six major studies investigating the results of intensive or aggressive treatment of diabetes with medications. His summary? “Aggressive treatment kills”
This lifestyle medicine approach is radically different from advice from my doctor and other diabetes support organisations. Are there are there any similar, evidence based programs like it anywhere else?
In the United States, Dr. Dean Ornish, arguably the world leader in lifestyle medicine, has a program with many similarities. His focus is primarily on reversing heart disease but many participants have type 2 diabetes. It is so effective that US Medicare and many US health funds now pay for it. Scroll down to the Diabetes and Pre-Diabetes section of that site.
Follow up studies with program participants (34% of whom had type 2 diabetes) showed amazing results for people with diabetes. Participants’ Hemoglobin A1C dropped below 7.0 and stayed there on a follow-up visit a year later. This was the case even when participants dramatically reduced their diabetes medications.
Participants continued to see a decrease in weight, medication usage and blood sugar. Many decrease their insulin in a few weeks and many come off their insulin in a matter of a few months. They even had some dramatic cases of peoples’ insulin needs dropping by 80% in 4 days.
What evidence can you provide to support the claim that a person with type 2 diabetes can be free of all medications, including insulin, if he or she follows this lifestyle medicine based program?
For just a taste of the evidence, read this recent newsletter article written by Dr Ben Brown MD, Medical Director, Ornish Lifestyle Medicine. It references credible studies showing dramatic reductions in insulin-requirements, achieved following a high complex carb diet (yes, the one people living with diabetes are told to avoid).
Our coaching plans are evidence based. Every plan will include references to the supporting evidence, ranging from peer reviewed journal articles to inspiring case studies of people who have succeeded on this type of program.
Getting Started
Can anyone reverse type 2 diabetes?
I don’t live in Sydney, Australia. Can you still work with me?
I’m interested but would like to discuss my situation before starting the program to see if it really is for me. What options are there?
Costs and Conditions
Does Reverse Diabetes make a commission or fee or receive any remuneration from the external program partners?
Do health insurers or Medicare (Australia) or public health systems pay for any of this diabetes reversal program?
Are the coaching fees refundable if I’m not satisfied with the results I’m getting?
To show confidence in our program in a meaningful way, we will put our coaching fees on the line. If you don't get great results or you are not satisfied, we refund your coaching fees - no questions asked.
To make it even easier to try our program, we arrange our coaching proposals into small, short term modules or stages. Typically they are between 2 - 4 weeks per module. We don't ask you to sign up to or pay for long contracts that lock you in; just short modules with no obligation to continue onto the next stage if you are not getting the results you want.
The way our fee refund works is quite simple; once you finish a stage of coaching, we offer you a coaching proposal for the next stage. In the unlikely event you completed a stage and were not satisfied with your results, we will refund your fees for that stage and you wouldn't continue on to the next stage. Before moving forward to the next stage of coaching, we simply ask you to say whether you were satisfied with the stage just completed before moving forward.
The full terms and conditions will be included in your coaching agreement. The only items not covered by our fee refund policy are fees you may pay to third party providers of services, such as pathology labs, a doctor or a dietitian. These are always paid directly by you to those providers. In most cases, these third party providers are partly or wholly paid for by public health or private insurance schemes, so the financial risk is quite minimal overall.
Do I have to sign up for a long-term contract?
Can you provide a guide on what this diabetes reversal program may cost?
Program cost depends on the level of support needed and program length. For example, if you have been diagnosed recently with pre-diabetes and don't have any other chronic health problems and don't struggle with emotional eating or have food cravings, our standard program is most likely going to be suitable and will be quite low cost and of short duration. At the other end of the spectrum, if you have a long standing diagnosis of diabetes, are on multiple medications, have other chronic health problems, have diabetes complications and struggle with food cravings or emotional eating, the intensive support program will probably be required and it is more expensive and may need to go for a longer period. However, until we know a lot more about you, we can't estimate how long you may need to remain on our program and just how intensive the support will need to be.
We would love to be in a position to help every client regardless of their ability to pay and can create very low cost programs for less than AU$300. These can even be spread out over a series of payments. However, they will have only low levels of support and will require the client to be quite pro-active. Think of it like learning to dance; you could buy a $20 video and learn slowly by watching at home or take private lessons with an instructor @ about $100 per hour and make very fast progress.
Other Questions
Can I expect any other health benefits from following this Lifestyle Medicine program?
Read more about the science underpinning Lifestyle Medicine, HERE.
I have not heard much about EFT. Is there any science behind it and could it really help me with my binge eating? I feel like I’m addicted to some foods.
Evidence/Medical Support
Can type 1 diabetes be reversed? Does the LiMe program apply to type 1 diabetes?
High levels of insulin, even with normal blood sugar levels, are very harmful long term, causing cardiovascular disease amongst many others. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, strongly linked to dietary risk factors, including dairy protein consumption and it will always require insulin therapy. Type 1.5 is similar but onsets in late adulthood and more slowly.
*The results achieved require a customised plan based on the health of each participant and will depend entirely on program compliance and completion.
Do I have to become vegan or vegetarian to reverse diabetes?
We understand some people have eaten animal foods t
We understand some people have eaten animal foods their whole life and giving them up totally would feel like deprivation and just seem unrealistic. The evidence is that the more the diet is based on a variety of plant-based foods, the faster type 2 diabetes will reverse. If you are happy with steady progress in the right direction and are willing to slowly change your diet, we can work with that and can include some animal foods in your program. Just keep in mind, the reversal will be faster and longer lasting the more the food is plant based. You may be surprised how hard it is to tell some plant based dishes apart from their animal based versions, when our food coaches show you how.
What diet is the LiMe Program based on?
The focus is on eating whole foods that are minimally processed, contain no harmful additives, are high in fibre and are nutrient dense. That means they are rich in plant based foods, vary in fat, complex carbohydrate content and protein. We don’t believe any one diet is the best for everyone.
By drawing from these various diets we can create personalised eating plans that will suit just about anyone's preferences. We also create low Glycemic Load (GI) meals that prevent blood sugar spikes in the early stages of the program when insulin resistance is still high and a client is very sensitive to carbohydrates and sugars.
Is the LiMe Program based on using low carb/high fat or ketogenic (keto) diets?
They are the exact opposite of what people living with diabetes should be eating long term. The problem is that in the short term their effects can be deceptive and they appear to work. People often lose weight, reduce blood glucose levels and may even reduce medications.
Type 2 diabetes is not a condition caused by excess carbohydrates, as is commonly believed. The false logic is that because carbohydrates break down into sugars in the blood and because diabetes is a condition of high blood sugars, avoiding carbs, reduces sugars and fixes diabetes. It appears logical at first glance. The only problem is, that although it is not immediately obvious, diabetes is mainly caused by excess fat, not sugar.
Excess fat harms in 2 ways.
Excess fat accumulates in the muscle and liver cells and causes insulin-resistance, which means the insulin-receptors become de-sensitised to insulin and when that happens, blood glucose can't get into the cells where it is needed for energy. It stays in the bloodstream, giving high sugar readings-one of a set of metabolic markers for diabetes.
Excess fat also causes the pancreas' insulin-producing cells to fail over time. As excess fat accrues in the pancreas, it releases inflammatory chemicals that damage the insulin- producing cells, causing them to fail over time, leading to insufficient insulin-production. This is very briefly why a high fat diet is the last thing needed to treat type 2 diabetes.
So why does a high fat /keto diet appear to work?
If you drastically reduce carbs and replace them with fat, which does not convert into blood sugars like carbohydrates do, very little insulin is needed and the diabetes condition seems improved. However, in the background, the high fat diet is worsening insulin-resistance and harming pancreatic function and eventually diabetes will return and be much more difficult to manage due to the damage done. A glucose tolerance test (GTT) will soon show that the high fat or keto diet is not working. The HbA1c test alone can be very misleading on its own as it does not show the high's and low's in levels or show the degree of insulin resistance.
This briefly explains why low carb or keto type diets may seem to work work in the short term but are very harmful long term to a diabetic’s health.
For a fully referenced, in-depth explanation of why keto diets are not the answer to diabetes, read this great article by our friends in the United States that run the Mastering Diabetes program over there. It busts some of the myths that ketogenic diet marketers claim as facts and is really worth reading if you are thinking the keto diet is a good option to deal with your diabetes.
Does the LiMe Program entail counting calories, portion control or counting carbs (dieting)?
What exactly does it mean when you use the term ‘diabetes reversal’? How do you reverse diabetes?
Sometimes, this is just not possible, as in cases of type 1 and 1.5 diabetes, or in rare type 2 situations where the pancreas’ beta cells are permanently damaged and secrete insufficient amounts of insulin to control blood glucose levels without some exogenous insulin-therapy.
The goal is to restore insulin-sensitivity and reverse insulin-resistance which is a realistic goal for most people with type 2 diabetes. The evidence is simply overwhelming that the more the long term way of eating moves towards nutrient dense foods with a substantial part being plant based, the better the outcomes. However, please remember that this is a permanent lifestyle change to ensure symptoms don’t return.
My doctor is sceptical and unsupportive of lifestyle medicine programs. Can you help me in this situation?
Many doctors have a medication centred approach to diabetes management and most have minimal nutrition education, but if they examine the evidence we provide with your coaching plan, it should be obvious which approach works best long term. Keep in mind too, that most doctors are not reimbursed adequately by insurers or public health systems to deliver lifestyle advice. Unfortunately, the reimbursement schedules encourage short, 15 minute consultations and financially penalise long consultations.
Please note that if you are on medications, it is essential that you have a qualified doctor supervising and adjusting your medications. This program is very effective and medications will need reduction as your health improves.
Why don’t doctors suggest the Lifestyle Medicine approach?
There are 2 main reasons why they don’t:
Firstly, most doctor
There are 2 main reasons why they don’t:
Firstly, most doctors have no training in or knowledge of Medical Nutrition Therapy. In Australia, for example, they typically receive just two hours of nutrition education in their six years of medical school.
The 2nd challenge that doctors face is that they are poorly reimbursed by public health systems or insurers for providing Lifestyle Medicine-oriented services. These services take a substantial amount of time to deliver. Unfortunately, public health systems and private insurers currently offer very little incentive to time poor doctors to provide their patients with the support and education that is needed in the early stages of diabetes. We are filling that gap while working with doctors and other health professionals.
So, don’t be surprised that your doctor is not offering anything other than very general advice on lifestyle measures and medications.
My doctor says that I will avoid diabetes complications like blindness and kidney failure, by tightly controlling my blood sugar numbers with medications. Why worry about all this healthy lifestyle stuff?
Worryingly, medications previously thought to reduce the risk of heart attacks, are now appearing to actually cause them in the long term. Statin drugs are a commonly prescribed medication to reduce that risk. Some statins are now being blamed for increasing heart attack risk.
Read this 2017 newsletter article by Dr John McDougall MD, a board-certified doctor in California, with about 40 years’ experience, analysing six major studies investigating the results of intensive or aggressive treatment of diabetes with medications. His summary? “Aggressive treatment kills”
This lifestyle medicine approach is radically different from advice from my doctor and other diabetes support organisations. Are there are there any similar, evidence based programs like it anywhere else?
In the United States, Dr. Dean Ornish, arguably the world leader in lifestyle medicine, has a program with many similarities. His focus is primarily on reversing heart disease but many participants have type 2 diabetes. It is so effective that US Medicare and many US health funds now pay for it. Scroll down to the Diabetes and Pre-Diabetes section of that site.
Follow up studies with program participants (34% of whom had type 2 diabetes) showed amazing results for people with diabetes. Participants’ Hemoglobin A1C dropped below 7.0 and stayed there on a follow-up visit a year later. This was the case even when participants dramatically reduced their diabetes medications.
Participants continued to see a decrease in weight, medication usage and blood sugar. Many decrease their insulin in a few weeks and many come off their insulin in a matter of a few months. They even had some dramatic cases of peoples’ insulin needs dropping by 80% in 4 days.
What evidence can you provide to support the claim that a person with type 2 diabetes can be free of all medications, including insulin, if he or she follows this lifestyle medicine based program?
For just a taste of the evidence, read this recent newsletter article written by Dr Ben Brown MD, Medical Director, Ornish Lifestyle Medicine. It references credible studies showing dramatic reductions in insulin-requirements, achieved following a high complex carb diet (yes, the one people living with diabetes are told to avoid).
Our coaching plans are evidence based. Every plan will include references to the supporting evidence, ranging from peer reviewed journal articles to inspiring case studies of people who have succeeded on this type of program.
Getting Started
Can anyone reverse type 2 diabetes?
I don’t live in Sydney, Australia. Can you still work with me?
I’m interested but would like to discuss my situation before starting the program to see if it really is for me. What options are there?
Costs and Conditions
Does Reverse Diabetes make a commission or fee or receive any remuneration from the external program partners?
Do health insurers or Medicare (Australia) or public health systems pay for any of this diabetes reversal program?
Are the coaching fees refundable if I’m not satisfied with the results I’m getting?
To show confidence in our program in a meaningful way, we will put our coaching fees on the line. If you don't get great results or you are not satisfied, we refund your coaching fees - no questions asked.
To make it even easier to try our program, we arrange our coaching proposals into small, short term modules or stages. Typically they are between 2 - 4 weeks per module. We don't ask you to sign up to or pay for long contracts that lock you in; just short modules with no obligation to continue onto the next stage if you are not getting the results you want.
The way our fee refund works is quite simple; once you finish a stage of coaching, we offer you a coaching proposal for the next stage. In the unlikely event you completed a stage and were not satisfied with your results, we will refund your fees for that stage and you wouldn't continue on to the next stage. Before moving forward to the next stage of coaching, we simply ask you to say whether you were satisfied with the stage just completed before moving forward.
The full terms and conditions will be included in your coaching agreement. The only items not covered by our fee refund policy are fees you may pay to third party providers of services, such as pathology labs, a doctor or a dietitian. These are always paid directly by you to those providers. In most cases, these third party providers are partly or wholly paid for by public health or private insurance schemes, so the financial risk is quite minimal overall.
Do I have to sign up for a long-term contract?
Can you provide a guide on what this diabetes reversal program may cost?
Program cost depends on the level of support needed and program length. For example, if you have been diagnosed recently with pre-diabetes and don't have any other chronic health problems and don't struggle with emotional eating or have food cravings, our standard program is most likely going to be suitable and will be quite low cost and of short duration. At the other end of the spectrum, if you have a long standing diagnosis of diabetes, are on multiple medications, have other chronic health problems, have diabetes complications and struggle with food cravings or emotional eating, the intensive support program will probably be required and it is more expensive and may need to go for a longer period. However, until we know a lot more about you, we can't estimate how long you may need to remain on our program and just how intensive the support will need to be.
We would love to be in a position to help every client regardless of their ability to pay and can create very low cost programs for less than AU$300. These can even be spread out over a series of payments. However, they will have only low levels of support and will require the client to be quite pro-active. Think of it like learning to dance; you could buy a $20 video and learn slowly by watching at home or take private lessons with an instructor @ about $100 per hour and make very fast progress.
Other Questions
Can I expect any other health benefits from following this Lifestyle Medicine program?
Read more about the science underpinning Lifestyle Medicine, HERE.
I have not heard much about EFT. Is there any science behind it and could it really help me with my binge eating? I feel like I’m addicted to some foods.
Caution
This program is very effective at reducing your weight, blood pressure,
and blood sugar level. Please consult with your treating doctor before
changing your diet and do not start, stop, or change medication without
professional medical advice. This website is not intended to take the
place of personalised medical care or treatment and must not be taken
as medical advice.
Disclaimer & Results
To meet our definition of genuine type 2 diabetes reversal, a number of
criteria must be met to achieve non-diabetic range blood sugar levels.
These include; (a) not requiring any diabetes medications or insulin to
be taken. (b) achieving normal range blood sugar levels as measured by
3 blood tests; HbA1c test, the 2 hour glucose tolerance test (GTT) and a
fasting blood sugar test. It is only possible to reverse type 2 diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes and type 1.5 (LADA) diabetes cannot be reversed and
will always require insulin. A small proportion of type 2 diabetes cannot
be reversed when insulin production has become insufficient.
Results achieved can vary between individuals and depend on many
factors, such as degree of compliance with a coaching program, pre-
existing conditions, severity of existing conditions and the rate a
coaching program is implemented.
Refund Policy
We will refund all coaching fees if a client does not achieve improvement
in their type 2 diabetes as measured by the 3 diabetes blood tests,
provided the agreed coaching program is followed and is verified.
