Great insight, thanks Graham.

Great grandpa had a good run, for sure. Living a happy life and go where your heart takes you. Maybe we underestimate the value of happiness.

@A DiabetesTeam Member yes, you nailed it

The best we can do is control as close as we can to Non-Diabetic Normal Blood Sugars

Whether or not you need meds to do that, striving to achieve and maintain normal weight and eating a healthy low carb diet will make that easier

And then you hope a bit that your genetics or some other physiological condition doesn't advance your diabetes any

There is tons of Type 2 in my family and I mentioned my Dad who went from Diet Alone to needing insulin in a couple of months - it was just "wammo" you are no longer in control - you progressed almost overnight

His Mother (my paternal grandmother), Type 2, took metformin for 3 or 4 years when it hit the market in Canada (1970's) and then went off it - no diabetic complications - died of unrelated cancer - so diet, few years of metformin, back to diet alone - no real progression, no complications

Her Father (my Great Grandfather) - diagnosed with Sugar Diabetes in 1920, the year before Insulin was discovered - lived to be 101 years old, never took an anti-diabetic med

He died of asphyxiation a week after his 101st Birthday. He lived a Veterans assisted living facility. Him and a buddy "walked down to a local pub" (his buddy was in his 90's) and drank a little too much

They stumbled back, Harry passed out on his bed, on his back and vomited resulting in suffocation

101, never took a med, did it all with diet, never progressed, not a complication and healthy enough to "walk a city block"

I "hope" that my Type 2 follows the path of Granny and Great Grandpa and Not Dad

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A Diabete...

Good morning warriors.

My plan is to control my diabetes journey until I cannot maintain nondiabetic numbers. Baby steps.

The longer I can remain in clinical remission, the better as I age and live an adventure filled life. Baby steps.

Then I plan to get help from insulins. Baby steps.

Although GLP-1 agonists have their appeal. Baby steps.

I guess we will see.

And Never give up, Never surrender, Never ever.
You got this.
Have a wonderful day.

@A DiabetesTeam Member You have a few questions there so I will try to address them

First which is better?

Diet/Exercise/Weight Management OR Meds

The answer is "whichever works to keep you in a controlled range" - diabetes is all about "control" (live long and prosper) or "uncontrolled" = die of complications which are slow and painful

Which is the "Healthier" way?

Meds do not belong our bodies and almost of all of them can be toxic or deadly so doing it without meds is healthier

Does achieving remission without meds slow progression of the disease?

NO - there is no evidence of that

But you said "progression" and not "complications"

Progression will be based on hundreds of factors, some that have nothing to do with Diabetes - if you develop RA that will result in a progression of your Type 2, or you pancreas may go on permanent strike and that has zero to do with being in remission without meds - some progress fast, some slow, some apparently not at all

Complications are a different story

If you achieve remission without meds which by definition (paraphrased): maintain an A1C of under 6.5% without medication for a period of at least 90 days, during the time you are in remission you have "non-diabetic blood sugar range averages" so without "diabetic blood sugar levels" you can't develop "diabetic complications caused by elevated blood sugar"

As long as you stay in remission, without meds, you are as close to eliminating the possibly of diabetic complications later on as you can possibly achieve by any method with no potential long term side effects from medication

But achieving that doesn't mean the disease won't/can't progress - my Father had perfect control for about 12 years and then the "wheels fell off the wagon" almost overnight - he went from managing with diet alone to needing insulin in the span of a couple of months

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@A DiabetesTeam Member

Hello Henry @A DiabetesTeam Member and @A DiabetesTeam Member
Can you please add anything to the question?
Thank you
Lorna ❤️

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