Fasting For Diabetics?

I came across this article amongst others on the benefits of fasting. Fasting of course is not new and we know that Jesus himself fasted for 40 days in the wilderness.

Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness(Mat 3:17 KJV) And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
(Mat 4:1-2 KJV) Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. {2} And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered.

What re the benefits of fasting? Here is a link and good advice on fasting for Type II diabetes. Because of the nature of diabetes and to avoid possibly injury or death, it should not be a self administered home remedy. That being said, the article presented here indicates that under proper medical observation and and by a team of professionals can and has been extremely beneficial for Type II diabetes. IS IS NOT INTENDED FOR TYPE I DIABETICS.

Link to Fasting

Excerpts from the article:

  "In these early studies on fasting done at the hospital of the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research in New York City, the physicians employing this therapy noted that 'fasting has not appeared harmful, even in these few cases where it has not been successful.' Even in these early investigations, the importance of keeping the patient permanently 'below weight' after the fast, and the importance of restricting the quantity of fat in the diet to maintain the benefit gained from the fast, were repeatedly emphasized. The authors stated: 'Anyone can readily convince him/herself that, in a suitably severe diabetic who is symptom-free for days or weeks (after a fast) and on a fixed diet, the addition of some quantity of butter or olive oil to the diet will bring back the glycosuria, ketonuria and other symptoms immediately or within a short time.' Unfortunately, now that physicians are able to control these symptoms with drugs, these pearls of fasting knowledge gleaned by researchers from the days when no drugs were available are largely ignored.
      "More recent studies reporting on the fasting of diabetic patients have likewise shown excellent results (Vessby B, Boberg M, Karlstrom B, et. al.--'Improved Metabolic Control After Supplemented Fasting In Overweight Type 2 Diabetic Patients,' 'ACTA Medica Scandinavia,' 1984; 216:67-74; McCarty MF--'Maturity-Onset Diabetes: Toward a Physiologically Appropriate Management,' 'Medical Hypothesis,' England, 1981; 7/10: 1265-1285; Gueris J, Segrestaa JM, Lamotte M.--'Insulinemia In the Obese Before and After Fasting Therapy,' 'Journal Annuel Diabetologie Hotel Dieu,' France, l969; 10:287-292), and confirm the changes I see with my patients. They concluded that, following a prolonged fast, the diabetic patient shows a substantial improvement in insulin function independent of the degree of weight loss, and restoration of pancreatic function can occur that does not occur with weight loss alone. Complete remission of diabetes was reported in many patients. . . ."
      "If the fast is used correctly in the Type 2 diabetic, it increases beta-cell sensitivity to glucose, which can restore integrity to the pancreas and allow it to re-establish its sensitivity to glucose. This is an important therapeutic modality to bring diabetics whose sugar levels are relatively well controlled with optimal diet to the point where, after a fast is completed, the blood sugars remain entirely within the normal range while the same diet is maintained.

If fasting is of interest to you in combating Type II diabetes, I suggest you  read this article in full and contact your doctor to inquire about doing a fast under medical supervision. 

"So, we must get diabetics off their treatments. If the sugars are not adequately controlled with diet alone, then fasting must be used. If the diabetic is motivated and truly wants the best opportunity for a long, healthy life, we should not use medication at all in Type 2 diabetes; instead, we should utilize aggressive nutritional intervention with fasting, the most effective treatment for these patients. BECAUSE OF FCI's 35-year commitment to teaching kindred souls, worldwide, how to regain their optimum-health potential, we support avant-garde physicians who are teaching themselves (as Scientific Fasting has never been taught, for example, in any of the 131 U.S. medical schools), as well as their patients, this magnificent, age-old, weight loss, detoxification and healing discipline. More often, however, it's patients teaching their physicians, as in the following from a Chicago, IL, financial planner, 60, on fasting day 77 of the 87-day Total Detox. Program he began at 6' 2", 247 lbs. taking medication as a pre-diabetic (wanting to lose 50 lbs. and get off medication):
      "Dennis, I had my post-fast physical yesterday. My doctor was amazed! All blood work was great. You will remember he did not know what I was doing. When he saw my weight, and actually saw me, he was really interested in what I was doing. I gave him your Fasting.com web address, and he wrote it down. He said that maybe he had other patients who could benefit from what you are doing. I do not have to go back on my "Amaryl" medication. So, all was well. Thanks for all you have done for me. Michael Landry."
      Obviously, FCI's primary focus is PREVENTIVE, through detoxification, weight loss and healing fasts. Likewise, the University of California at Berkeley School of Public Health's "365 Tips for Better Health" includes the following: "Run Away From Diabetes! Recent studies offer strong, direct evidence that physical activity may actually help prevent non-insulin-dependent diabetes." Similarly, a U.S. National Institutes of Health study showed that trimming just 15 lbs. of body fat could cut the risk of diabetes by 58% in those one step from developing the disease (a.k.a. prediabetics). That, in turn, could cut U.S. treatment costs by about $60 million annually.
IN CONCLUSION, FCI does accept, year in and decade out, many non-insulin-dependent Type 2 diabetics as clients on a 'waivered' basis, judging each individual independently before accepting them as our client. Thus, if you have Diabetes 2, please do let us know your age, height, weight, how much weight you're wanting to lose, other health problems, what meds you may be taking, fasting history (if any), etc. I do hope this has been of some help. Respectfully, Dennis Paulson, Founder/Director, FCI, Inc.

Lastly here is another excerpt from an article and website on "Medifast"  which involves high protein shakes and can apparently be done at home with a doctor's supervision:


Link to medifast


Diabetes Health with Medifast

Medifast recognizes the twin problems that overweight Type II diabetics face: losing the fat and controlling blood sugar levels. That’s why Medifast created a special set of meals that will ensure that you can lose the weight without risking wild swings in your blood glucose.

The PLUS for Diabetes Shakes shave a few grams of carbs off the standard Medifast shakes and add a few more grams of protein (as compared to the protein content in the women's shakes. Less carbs means less spiking in your blood sugar while more protein means better moderation of the sugar that enters your bloodstream after digestion.
You can get these shakes in vanilla, chocolate and strawberry.
The Diabetes 2-Week and 4-Week packages are collections of Medifast products that are more sensitive to those women and men who need to avoid hypoglycemic and hyperglycemic conditions. With the exception of the shakes, the products are standard Medifast items that are in the Medifast for Women and Medifast for Men packages.
While both packages include shakes, bars, oatmeal and soup, the 4-week package adds more variety with the Cranberry Mango Fruit Drink.
A 2005 study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health showed that the Medifast diet for diabetics enabled more people to lose more weight over people on the a standard American Dietary Association diet. Additionally, 24 percent of the Medifast users decreased or eliminated their diabetes medication, compared to 0 percent on the standard ADA diet. Click here for more details.
We recommend that you contact your primary care physician or diabetes specialist before beginning a program using Medifast PLUS for Diabetics.

A 28 day package for men and women is $299.50 at the time of this post.

Dan


"Tis not knowing much, but what is useful, that makes a wise man."
Thomas Fuller

If any of you is deficient in wisdom, let him ask of the giving God [Who gives] to everyone liberally and ungrudgingly, without reproaching or faultfinding, and it will be given him. James 1: 5