Post Time: 2025-07-26
Type-2 diabetes, once considered a progressive and irreversible condition, is now being viewed with a lens of possibility. While the term "cure" remains contentious within the medical community, substantial evidence indicates that type-2 diabetes can be effectively reversed, leading to significant health improvements and even remission. This article delves into the concept of reversing type-2 diabetes, specifically focusing on three key indicators: A1C levels, fasting glucose, and insulin levels. We’ll explore what these markers signify, how they relate to diabetes, and strategies to help achieve optimal levels that can effectively put diabetes into remission.
Understanding the Hallmarks of Type-2 Diabetes
Type-2 diabetes is primarily characterized by insulin resistance, a condition where the body's cells become less responsive to insulin. As a result, the pancreas compensates by producing more insulin to force glucose into the cells. Over time, this can lead to hyperglycemia (elevated blood sugar) and hyperinsulinemia (excessively high insulin levels). The excess glucose and insulin circulating in the blood can wreak havoc on the body’s organs and tissues, resulting in the array of complications associated with diabetes. The condition is diagnosed through these key metrics:
| Metric | Normal Range | Pre-Diabetes Range | Diabetes Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1C | Below 5.7% | 5.7% - 6.4% | 6.5% or higher |
| Fasting Glucose | Below 100 mg/dL | 100-125 mg/dL | 126 mg/dL or higher |
| Insulin | Varies (typically below 25 mIU/L) | Often Elevated | Highly elevated |
The Limitations of Current Medical Approaches
While traditional treatments, including medications like metformin, insulin, and others, are essential for managing the symptoms of diabetes and controlling blood glucose levels, they often fail to address the underlying cause, which is primarily insulin resistance. These treatments help mitigate the risks of high blood glucose, but they don't always reverse the progression or enable patients to reduce or stop their medication usage. Therefore, the focus on true remission or reversal requires a different approach focused on resolving insulin resistance itself.
The Key Trio: A1C, Fasting Glucose, and Insulin Levels
Rather than simply managing the symptoms of diabetes, reversal efforts need to focus on restoring the body's normal metabolic processes. This is achieved by optimizing A1C, fasting glucose, and insulin levels.
A1C: The Long-Term View
The A1C test measures your average blood sugar level over the past two to three months by indicating the percentage of hemoglobin in your blood that is bound to glucose. It is used to assess the effectiveness of your diabetes management plan over time and helps identify whether the body’s insulin and glucose levels have improved or declined. The most common treatment target is an A1C below 7%. While this level of control manages the condition, a truly reversed or remitted state targets levels below 5.7% consistently without medication intervention.
- Why it Matters for Reversal: A lower A1C indicates better long-term blood sugar control. Consistently maintaining normal A1C levels without medication is a strong indicator that diabetes is in remission. It demonstrates that the body is more efficient at using glucose, reducing the risk of long-term complications.
- Reversal Strategy: Strategies must focus on lifestyle modifications like dietary changes and increased physical activity to help improve how the body processes glucose rather than relying on medication to artificially lower A1C levels.
Fasting Glucose: The Immediate Picture
Fasting blood glucose measures your blood sugar level after an overnight fast, usually for at least 8 hours. It offers a snapshot of how well your body is regulating blood sugar levels when not actively eating and is a good measure of your base-line metabolic health. Elevated fasting glucose (above 100mg/dL) indicates that glucose isn't being utilized efficiently by your body, leading to chronic hyperglycemia. The gold standard for diagnosing diabetes is fasting glucose above 126mg/dL.
- Why It Matters for Reversal: Lowering fasting glucose back to normal ranges (below 100 mg/dL) shows a clear improvement in how your body manages sugar. When combined with a lower A1C, it confirms that not only are your blood sugar levels stable on average, but also that they are controlled consistently, both after meals and while fasting.
- Reversal Strategy: Lifestyle interventions targeting liver health, including a low-carbohydrate diet, intermittent fasting, and regular exercise, can help improve insulin sensitivity and reduce overnight glucose dumping.
Insulin: The Root Cause
Insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas, is essential for moving glucose from your bloodstream into cells for energy. In type-2 diabetes, your body becomes less responsive to insulin (insulin resistance), leading to chronically elevated insulin levels as the pancreas struggles to keep up. Although a standard diagnostic test, the level of insulin in the blood is highly variable, particularly with type-2 diabetes. However, generally, a lower insulin level indicates a higher level of sensitivity and proper functionality in the body’s glucose control process.
- Why It Matters for Reversal: High insulin levels (hyperinsulinemia) are often the root of type-2 diabetes, stemming from insulin resistance. Lowering insulin levels shows an improvement in insulin sensitivity and indicates a genuine reversal rather than symptomatic management.
- Reversal Strategy: Effective lifestyle changes aimed at reducing insulin resistance can significantly lower insulin levels. Strategies to do this include very low-carbohydrate diets, regular exercise, and strategic fasting approaches that support overall metabolic health.
Strategies to Achieve Reversal
Reversing type-2 diabetes is not a one-size-fits-all approach and often involves personalized and careful health modifications tailored to each individual and body. However, there are core changes that focus on the principles behind the markers we have discussed:
1. Nutritional Strategies for Reversal
- Low-Carbohydrate Diets: Dramatically reduce consumption of refined carbohydrates, sugars, and starches, which lead to glucose spikes and increased insulin. Prioritize whole, unprocessed foods, healthy fats, and moderate protein. Studies have shown very low-carb diets, like the ketogenic diet, can lead to significant reductions in A1C levels, even resulting in remission in some individuals.
- Focus on Fiber: Include plenty of fiber-rich foods such as non-starchy vegetables, which slow down glucose absorption and help control blood sugar.
- Avoid Processed Foods: Eliminate processed foods, sugary drinks, and unhealthy fats, which can exacerbate insulin resistance and lead to inflammation.
2. Physical Activity for Reversal
- Regular Exercise: Incorporate regular physical activity into your routine. Combine aerobic exercise with resistance training, as both have been shown to improve insulin sensitivity and glucose control. Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week.
- Strength Training: Adding muscle mass has a direct impact on insulin sensitivity and improves the body’s capacity to burn glucose.
- Active Lifestyle: Incorporate more physical activity into daily life by taking stairs, walking instead of driving, or standing during work.
3. Strategic Fasting for Reversal
- Intermittent Fasting: Implementing intermittent fasting can improve insulin sensitivity and reduce the frequency of eating, leading to reduced demand on the body’s metabolic system, lower overall calorie intake, and reduced insulin requirements. Methods vary (e.g., 16/8, 5:2 fasting), but all should be done under professional guidance for best results.
- Extended Fasting: Extended fasting may be considered in some cases under medical supervision for a deeper metabolic reset, which can be used with extreme care for short term benefit.
- Fasting Mimicking Diet: This diet mimics the metabolic benefits of fasting while still providing macro and micronutrients. Studies have shown its positive impacts on weight loss, insulin sensitivity and blood sugar.
4. Importance of Sleep and Stress Reduction
- Prioritize Quality Sleep: Lack of sleep can impact hormones related to appetite and glucose control, making it more difficult to reverse diabetes.
- Manage Stress: Chronic stress can increase blood sugar and make diabetes harder to manage. Relaxation techniques like meditation and yoga can improve hormonal balance, reduce insulin resistance and help lower blood sugar and A1C.
The "Remission" Argument
While many in the medical profession still debate the use of the term "cure," the term remission is often used for individuals who consistently achieve normal or near-normal A1C levels (below 6.5%), fasting glucose levels (below 100mg/dL), and achieve healthy insulin levels while being off medications. This can result in a more stable and sustainable state, especially when those who achieve it do so through long-term lifestyle changes and positive interventions.
Research Support: The Reality of Remission
Studies like the DIREC (Diabetes Remission Clinical Trial) have shown impressive rates of remission in some patients through intensive lifestyle interventions (very-low-calorie diets, weight loss programs), underscoring the potential of reversing type-2 diabetes in certain people. Results suggest that remission rates are higher when interventions are initiated early after diagnosis, highlighting the importance of timely and proactive care. It’s not possible to guarantee full, life-long remission for everyone; but research has shown that those with lower insulin requirements and shorter diabetes diagnoses have the most potential for remission.
Conclusion: A New Perspective on Type-2 Diabetes
While the term "cure" is still debated, the evidence is clear: Type-2 diabetes can often be reversed or brought into remission through a combination of targeted lifestyle strategies and, at times, professional guidance. By focusing on key indicators like A1C levels, fasting glucose, and insulin levels, patients can not only manage their condition but also potentially eliminate the need for medication. The journey to reversal is highly personalized, requiring consistent effort, proper guidance, and a commitment to long-term lifestyle changes. The understanding of diabetes is changing and will continue to evolve as more scientific research becomes available.
The answer is yes. Actually, both hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism can lead to high blood sugar. This stems from a condition known as insulin resistance in which your cells become resistant to the effects of insulin. Insulin is supposed to help your body take up glucose and utilize it for energy. If it can't then the blood sugar will build up in your blood and you will experience high blood sugar. This condition stems from ANY disorder of thyroid function including both hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. And this is also true of thyroid medications. It's not the medications themselves which cause blood sugar but how much you are taking of them. It's possible for thyroid medication to both hurt or help your blood sugar, depending on your dose. In addition to this, hypothyroid patients also suffer from a high cortisol if they do not use an adequate dose of thyroid medication. High cortisol leads to further insulin resistance and can exacerbate high blood sugar. Because of this, if you have hypothyroidism and high blood sugar it's important that you address both your cortisol AND your thyroid function. Failure to address both of these can lead to persistent high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and weight loss resistance. Download my free thyroid resources here (including hypothyroid symptoms checklist, the complete list of thyroid lab tests + optimal ranges, foods you should avoid if you have thyroid disease, and more): Recommended thyroid supplements to enhance thyroid function: - Supplements that everyone with hypothyroidism needs: - Supplement bundle to help reverse Hashimoto's: - Supplements for those without a thyroid and for those after RAI: - Supplements for active hyperthyroidism: See ALL of my specialized supplements including protein powders, thyroid supplements, and weight loss products here: Want more from my blog? I have more than 400+ well-researched blog posts on thyroid management, hormone balancing, weight loss, and more. See all blog posts here: Prefer to listen via podcast? Download all of my podcast episodes here: Disclaimer: Dr. Westin Childs received his Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine from Rocky Vista University what is normal blood sugar 3 hours after eating College of Osteopathic medicine in 2013. His use of “doctor” or “Dr.” in relation to himself solely refers to that degree. Dr. blood sugar 168 after eating Childs is no longer practicing medicine and does not hold an active medical license so he can focus on helping people through videos, blog posts, research, and supplement formulation. To read more about why he is no longer licensed please see this page: This video is for general informational, educational, and entertainment purposes only. It should not be used to self-diagnose and it is not a substitute for a medical exam, treatment, diagnosis, prescription, or recommendation. It does not create a doctor-patient relationship between Dr. Childs and you. You should not make any changes to your medications or health regimens blood sugar 25 without first consulting a physician. If you have any questions please consult with your current primary care provider. Restart Medical LLC and Dr. Westin Childs are not liable or responsible for any advice, course of treatment, diagnosis, or any other information, services, or product you obtain through this website or video. #thyroid #hypothyroidism #hashimoto's