[AlisdairO]

My wife is a type 1 diabetic. Type 1 diabetes is a disorder not caused by diet or by any particular moral failing you might imagine, and people with it are the primary target of a device like this.

Your ignorance is insulting to millions of people who suffer due to diabetes. Please educate yourself rather than spouting nonsense.

[herbivore]

You are wrong. Has your wife ever tried a plant based diet, or is it just more convenient to believe your mainstream doctor? I guess the latter.

[officialchicken]

Have you ever understood physiology or biochemistry, much less endocrinology? While I'm sure you think you do, your comments reveal that you do not.

[AlisdairO]

The weight of evidence you've brought to bear is, it has to be said, overwhelming.

[herbivore]

If someone wants to leave their comfy mainstream bubble, google is only a tab away.

[AlisdairO]

You know what, I searched google.

About the best I could find when it comes to type 1 diabetes was someone saying that a plant based diet had helped reduce the volatility of their blood sugar levels. No mention of no longer needing insulin, or their pancreas magically repairing itself. Nothing that would make the device in the OP substantially less helpful.

This is all hardly a surprise, because plant-based diets tend to be low in refined carbohydrates, large quantities of which make diabetes harder to manage. People have achieved similar effects eating lots of other diets that aren't too high in carb (and this is, indeed, one area where mainstream science on the subject is in the process of updating itself).

Please, tell me of the people with type 1 diabetes who have had their condition reversed by a change in diet. I'd genuinely love it if it were true, but it's not. It's complete BS.

By the way, calling something 'mainstream' when it comes to medicine is not the insult you seem to think it is. It generally means 'credible people have performed studies with a credible methodology, and they have found stuff out'. You'll have to forgive me if I don't find anecdotes on the internet a particularly compelling alternative.

This is not to say that fringe opinions are all bad - occasionally one of those opinions will be right, the mainstream will be wrong, and the mainstream will be updated. Usually, though, we try to have some kind of credible evidence before stating wild leaps as fact - because most of these fringe opinions are wrong.

[Mz]

Hey, do you happen to have any links you would recommend explaining the difference? I have been keeping my mouth shut out of respect for the fact that a closed mouth gathers no feet. I am at high risk for CFRD -- cystic fibrosis related diabetes -- which is neither type 1 nor type 2, or so I understand. I have reversed a lot of my symptoms, something doctors say cannot be done. Trying to better understand the topic.

Thanks.

[AlisdairO]

Sure - this is a pretty good explanation: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/7504.php .

tl;dr: Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disorder in which your body kills the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, leaving you with no ability to produce insulin. Type 2 sufferers, on the other hand, can usually produce a normal amount of insulin, but their cells don't respond to it sufficiently.

[Mz]

Thank you. Working on reading it now.

(Though I think "auto immune disorder" is utter bullshit and generally means the same thing as the phrase "dumb luck" -- basically, that they don't really have a logical explanation.)

[mike_organon]

But "auto-immune disorder" does describe whats happening. What most doctors can't say is what causes that: so they can't say more than "dumb luck".

One explanation I've heard is leaky gut caused by grain sensitivity, followed by dairy proteins leaking out, causing the immune response, which then mistakes the pancreas which has similar looking proteins. I don't know how much evidence there is for that.

[Mz]

But there are causes for leaky syndrome and they are treatable. And leaky gut at least tells you descriptively what is happening. Auto immune simply assumes the body mysteriously attacks itself, for no apparent reason.

Anyway, thank you for the feedback. It fits with some things I know and is something I can follow up on.

[mike_organon]

Why do you think "mysteriously" is part of the definition of auto-immune? If we don't know what causes a particular auto-immune response doesn't make it not auto-immune.

[herbivore]

Generally auto immune disorder means your body is so full of toxins it can't work properly. That's why your first order of business is to cleanse it and stay away from everything your doctor says is fine: genetically modified foods, food dyes, pesticides, vaccines, fluoride, benzine and paragons in everyday products (think shampoo), artificial sweeteners, processed foods, animal protein and load up on vegetables, fruits, legumes, quinoa, super foods and antioxidants, etc. The information is out there, people just would rather listen to their doctor who will be out of a job if you just took better care of your body. There's no Spinach Foundation or Kale lobbyists paying doctor each time you walk in the door.

[Mz]

Me thinks you didn't bother to check my profile or you would know I run an alternative health site. While I generally agree with you, your approach is insulting, unnecessarily provocative and childish. Further, my experience is that while toxin load matters, it isn't everything. It is more complicated than that. Last, given your handle, it seems pretty clear you have an agenda. I would appreciate it if you don't drag me into your agenda. I have been whored out by other people enough in my life.

Thanks.