In school we learned that an apple a day keeps the doctor away. So how about using diet to keep away type 2 diabetes?
That’s what the National Health Service (NHS) is about to trial in England. The NHS is beginning a pilot program where participants with type 2 diabetes will receive a replacement diet of 800 calories per day for 12-months.
It’s easy to understand why the NHS is conducting the program – 22,000 deaths per year across the country, 3.4 million sufferers and an annual cost of £8.8 billion, which is 9% of the NHS budget.
It could get even worse: “There are currently five million people in England at high risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. If these trends persist, one in three people will be obese by 2034 and one in 10 will develop Type 2 diabetes.”
https://www.england.nhs.uk/diabetes/diabetes-prevention/
Someone who had type 2 diabetes is Tom Watson, former deputy leader of the UK Labour Party. In this interview with the This Morning program, Mr Watson is joined by Switched ON Living favourite Dr Michael Mosley, who famously used diet in 2012 to reverse his type 2 diabetes.
Tom tells us that by following the diet and lifestyle advice laid out by Dr Mosley, he reversed his condition and no longer needs medication. He calls Michael Mosley a “lifesaver”, which is fair enough when we think about the damage the disease can cause: “Type 2 diabetes is a leading cause of preventable sight loss in people of working age and is a major contributor to kidney failure, heart attack, and stroke.”
For me, the most salient moment of the interview is where Tom Watson talks about being in denial that he was ill. That really resonates with me. Self-reflection is so fundamental to being Switched ON.
I was also happy to hear that for Tom, there was no ‘light-bulb moment’ that shocked him action. Rather, it was the realisation over time that his life was in peril, and as a father, he has a responsibility to his family.
That’s great news for us. It means we don’t have to wait until we hear the voice of God on the road to Damascus before we mend our wicked ways. We have agency over our actions and the capacity to live our best lives. All we need is a Switched ON mindset.
Just ask Tom Watson.
