Adopting a healthy lifestyle helps reduce type 2 diabetes and may even reverse it in some patients, according to lifestyle medicine experts.
Lifestyle medicine focuses on addressing the root causes of chronic diseases through simple daily changes, such as improving diet, increasing physical activity, managing stress, and abstaining from harmful habits like smoking and alcohol. Experts believe this evidence-based approach can lead to significant improvement and even, in some cases, a cure.
Dr. Padmaja Bhatt, president of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, explains that dealing with diabetes is often limited to living with it, whereas the goal should be recovery and restoring health whenever possible.
Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body does not produce enough insulin or does not use it efficiently, leading to high blood sugar levels, which can cause serious complications such as heart disease, strokes, and problems with the eyes and kidneys.
This type of diabetes is linked to lifestyle factors, accounting for approximately 90% of cases. The risk of developing it increases with obesity, lack of physical activity, and chronic stress, in addition to genetic predisposition. Experts indicate that modern lifestyles have made even those most vulnerable to the disease more susceptible than before.
In this context, a long study conducted by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, which included more than 86,000 people between 1984 and 2019, showed that the proportion of people at risk who actually develop the disease is constantly increasing
Researchers attribute this to societal changes, most notably a lack of physical activity, reliance on processed foods, work stress, and declining sleep quality.
A recent study also revealed that sleeping less than six hours a day may increase the risk of developing diabetes by 16%, even among those who follow a healthy diet, indicating that sleep is a key factor that cannot be compensated for by food alone.
On the other hand, some studies warn against excessive consumption of artificial sweeteners found in some "diet" products and drinks, as they may affect the balance of gut bacteria and increase the risk of developing diabetes over time.
In an effort to curb the spread of the disease, the British National Health Service launched a dietary program based on low-calorie soups and shakes, which has helped thousands of patients reach the stage of recovery or remission.
The program is based on reducing calorie intake to about 800 calories per day, while providing ongoing support and guidance to patients to help them lose weight and maintain a healthy lifestyle, which may enable many to reduce their dependence on medication or, in some cases, eliminate it altogether.
