Is Fasting Good for People With Diabetes?
Introduction to Diabetes Fasting
Fasting is hardly new. People have been fasting for religious and other reasons for centuries.
The question for today "if one has diabetes, is fasting good practice?" I have heard pros and cons and am usually pretty suspect to what I may think is quack medicine, but please read on to see what the experts say.
Surprisingly, answers are sometimes difficult to come by. My frustrations with the lack of information began my passion for diabetes research on a path to a better quality of life living with diabetes. My goal now is to help others who I am sure have similar questions. There is no point in two of us making the same mistakes. Please read on to learn about diabetes fasting.
Having diabetes raises some pretty detailed concerns. Some, if not many are centred around what food will lower blood sugar, and what is the impact of certain foods on the body.
Fasting is part of the equation, not as part of "what we can eat on a diabetes' diet, but part of when is it best to eat."
The Caveat
Please do not attempt any changes to your treatment regime without expert medical advice and guidance. The information contained herein is not presented as professional medical advice and must be evaluated and considered from a non-professional perspective.
What are the Results of Diabetes Fasting
With a diabetes diet, "fasting" is a focus on when to eat. Fasting for a certain number of hours each day can help burn fat and evidence points to other benefits also.
In addition to weight loss, fasting has been shown to lower blood pressure, blood sugar, and total cholesterol. Lowering these is critical for diabetes treatment, which points to fasting as a good strategy for managing diabetes and worth exploring as a management strategy for people with Type II diabetes.
Diabetes Fasting - How does it Work?
This is possibly not your first rodeo when it comes to fasting. Many people have blood tests every day that require no eating for 12 hours. That was fasting, and I just had an A1C test that required no eating for 12 hours. So, count me in.
One dietitian and nutritionist who specializes in diabetes management suggests, "fasting reduces calorie intake" - fewer calories, greater opportunity to lose weight. The specialist continued, "fasting also causes an increase in growth hormone levels and a decrease in insulin, all that can positively affect a person's metabolic rate, leading to weight loss.
When deciding to use fasting as a diabetes strategy, there are a number of ways to consider proceeding. They all may have similar results, but what you can choose suit your needs, your lifestyle and the advice from your professional diabetes management team. The options that may be open to you are:
Skipping meals on a planned schedule
Reducing calorie intake for meals
Daily fasting where no food is taken during specified hours each day.
These can be developed in any manner to best suit your lifestyle and your needs for a better quality of life living with diabetes.
Benefits of Fasting for Diabetes
Intermittent fasting has come mainstream for weight loss and is considered a serious contender for helping people with Type II diabetes. Long-term studies are underway to look at the benefits - and as part of my goal to undertake diabetes research, and after talking to my doctor, I am going to begin a personal journey of fasting over the next month.
My goal is to help you on your personal journey to a better quality of life living with diabetes. If I can do that by "show and tell," I do not believe there is a much better way to have a positive impact. Let's see what fasting does to lower my blood sugar levels.
Potential Negative Impacts
There is always the risk that blood sugar glucose levels will fluctuate "wildly." It is important on two fronts: that you and your health team set high/low blood glucose levels and you have the ability to test the impacts of fasting. In my case, I am set to go with already agreed-to high/low reading boundaries and I use the FreeStyle Libre 2 sensor with my telephone. But before beginning a fasting regime, I will take my own advice and speak to my diabetes doctor - and if you are considering fasting as a diabetes treatment, I cannot encourage you strongly enough to do the same. An additional risk is being hungry all the time and reaching for that snack that we know we should not eat. It could be reaching for that delicious pastry, a bowl of cherry ice cream, or eating heavy carbs at your next meal. This can set off all sorts of non-intended impacts including lethargy, insulin sensitivity, potential hypoglycemia, nutritional deficiencies, and other medical conditions you may be facing. Please do not leave all this to yourself; speak to your professional healthcare team as you may have to adjust your medications and/or your fasting regime.
Fasting is not for the faint of heart. It takes determination, just like everything else we should do to have a quality of life living with diabetes. And please remember, I am here to help in any way I can. All you have to do is email me with your questions and concerns.
Steps to Take
Step 1
Here are our recommended steps to take when considering fasting as a way to manage diabetes:
Step 2
Talk to your doctor before beginning to fast. There is a safe approach to all of this and your doctor is best to get advice from. Fasting may be a change to your medication or other things to add or subtract- but the bottom line, check with your doctor first.
Step 3
Find the combination of a Fasting Plan that works for you. There are those that restrict calories two or three days a week or limit eating to certain periods of the day. There are those that have longer fasting times, and there may be other options too. The key is to find a fasting plan that works for you.
Step 4
The best part is the"eating."You have done all the hard work to get to this point, with the ultimate goal to have a quality of life living with diabetes. You can do it.
Eat healthily. Even if you are eating less, stick to a healthy diet that consists of whole, unprocessed foods, including non-starchy vegetables, protein, and healthy fats, as well as taking multivitamins, and drinking plenty of water. A healthy diet will help you lose or manage your weight and will help keep your blood sugar steady
The Ending
Having diabetes adds challenges to our lives, especially if we want to have a quality of living with life living with diabetes. To help get there, fasting is one strategy that you may find helps to manage your blood sugar levels and weight. It is all a mindset that we go through, from frustrations to joy. The bottom line; it is your body, your mind and your decision about what you do and how you live.
Our goal with the website is to help you get beyond your frustrations and on a positive journey to a better quality of life living with diabetes. There is no sense in the two of us making the same mistakes. All you have to do is send me an email with your questions comments and queries. I will do my best to help, on a passionate but non-professional basis.
Best wishes from all of us at Damndiabetes.ca
Wayne Drury has been diagnosed with Type II Diabetes. He was frustrated with the lack of usable information on the treatment of diabetes and how to lower blood sugar effectively. His passion now, using all he has found with diabetes research, is helping others on a path to a better quality of life living with diabetes, which he shares on his website.
Comments