[nabla9]

Excuse my ignorance, but this does not seem any way unconventional.

It seems to me that you are treating your condition without medication, not reversing it. Exercise and regulating your blood sugar using diet is what doctors suggest but not many people follow it. You still have permanently increased insulin resistance and you must stay on your exercise and diet to prevent it getting worse.

[ollysb]

Note they're using the term "reversed" not "cured".

> So, nearly four years down the line, is my diet still successful? Yes – but it takes close monitoring and willpower. We all know that diets are notoriously hard to stick to – unless the incentive is powerful enough. In my case, it is.

> …and the 1,750-calorie diet he follows now

As the theory goes some people are genetically predisposed to accumulating fat within the pancreas which causes insulin resistance. The (hypothesised) reason that the diet works is that it causes the body to use up fat from within the pancreas to the point where it begins to function again. Unfortunately the tendency remains, without continued management the pancreas will accumulate the fat again and the diabetic symptoms will return. This is borne out by the fact that a year later many of the original participants were experiencing diabetic symptoms once again.

[nabla9]

How does one differentiate between keeping blood sugar low with low calorie diet and exercise and the better functioning pancreas?

[ollysb]

Speaking from personal experience, with the same diet and level of exercise I see vastly different numbers. I've been through the process twice, the second time because I injured my back and wasn't able to exercise for two months. When I restarted my previous regime I found that my numbers stabilised at a far higher range than I'd achieved previously. I went through the same diet process again (for 2 weeks) after which I returned to the same regime. My numbers are now stabilised at the lower level that I'd achieved before.

[vonmoltke]

> You still have permanently increased insulin resistance and you must stay on your exercise and diet to prevent it getting worse.

Dr. Taylor's research, along with other research currently being done, is demonstrating that insulin resistance is not permanent as was once believed. The problem is, as ollysb noted below, getting people to make the lifestyle changes necessary and stick to them. Most people are not willing and able to make the changes required to keep the disease from progressing, let alone increase their insulin sensitivity again.