The 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet: How to Beat Diabetes Fast (and Stay Off Medication)
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About this ebook
The 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet is a radical new approach to the biggest health epidemic threatening us today...
Our modern diet, high in low-quality carbohydrates, is damaging our bodies—producing a constant overload of sugar in our bloodstream that clogs up our arteries and piles hidden fat into our internal organs. The result has been a doubling in the number of type 2 diabetics, as well as a surge in those with a potentially hazardous condition—prediabetes. It is now known that even moderately elevated blood sugar levels can trigger heart disease, stroke, dementia, and cancer.
But scientists have recently demonstrated that you can prevent and even reverse type 2 diabetes with a simple change in diet and lifestyle. Drawing on the work of Dr. Roy Taylor—one of the UK’s foremost diabetes experts—and his own experience as a one-time diabetic, Dr. Michael Mosley presents a groundbreaking, science-based, 8-week plan for diabetics who want to reverse their condition (and then stay off medication). He also offers a more flexible regime for people interested in the extensive health benefits to be gained from lowering their blood sugar levels and shedding dangerous fat.
As Dr. Mosley says, it is never too late to act.
Dr Michael Mosley
Dr. Michael Mosley (1957—2024) was the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The FastDiet, FastExercise, FastLife, The 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet, The Clever Gut Diet, and The Fast800 Diet. Dr. Mosley trained to be a doctor at the Royal Free Hospital in London before joining the BBC, where he spent three decades as a science journalist and executive producer. He became a well-known television personality and won numerous television awards, including an RTS (Royal Television Award), and was named Medical Journalist of the Year by the British Medical Association.
Read more from Dr Michael Mosley
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Reviews for The 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet
32 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I've been reading a lot about the ketogenic diet recently; this is a very interesting take on kick starting something very similar. Startling to have permission to try a significantly lower caloric intake.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5In the 21st century we individually have to counteract a phenomenon new to our society: for the first time in 200,000 years of homo sapiens’ evolution we need to learn how to avoid harm from the ever-present excess of food.A very useful book. I also bought the associated recipe book.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I've been reading a lot about the ketogenic diet recently; this is a very interesting take on kick starting something very similar. Startling to have permission to try a significantly lower caloric intake.
Book preview
The 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet - Dr Michael Mosley
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Contents
Foreword by Dr. Roy Taylor
Introduction by Dr. Michael Mosley
The Blood Sugar Crisis
Section I • The Science
CHAPTER ONE The Obesity Epidemic: Why We’re in the State We’re In
CHAPTER TWO How Do You Solve a Problem Like Diabetes?
CHAPTER THREE Are You at Risk for Type 2 Diabetes?
CHAPTER FOUR Going Low-Carb
CHAPTER FIVE The Return of the Very Low-Calorie Diet
Section II • The Blood Sugar Diet
CHAPTER SIX The Three Core Principles of the Blood Sugar Diet and What to Do Before You Start
CHAPTER SEVEN The Diet in Practice
CHAPTER EIGHT Getting Active
CHAPTER NINE Sorting Out Your Head
Conclusion
The Blood Sugar Diet: 50 Recipes
Breakfasts
Yogurt with Passion Fruit and Almonds
Yogurt with Rhubarb Compote
Yogurt with Apple, Mango, and Hazelnuts
Almond Butter with Apple, Seeds, and Goji Berries
Portobello Toast
with Wilted Spinach and Chickpeas
Portobello Toast
with Goat Cheese and Pine Nuts
No-Carb Muesli
Spinach and Pea Omelet
Melon, Blueberry, and Spinach Smoothie
Grilled Apricots with Yogurt
Mango, Raspberry, and Lime Smoothie
Blueberry and Green Tea Smoothie
Spinach and Raspberry Green Drink
Brunches
Vegetable Frittata
No-Carb Waffles
Baked Eggs with Minted Pea and Feta Salad
Poached Egg and Smoked Salmon Stack
Mexican Hash
Skinny Kedgeree
Soups, Salads, and Lunches
Crab and Mustard Lettuce Cups
Chicken and Walnut Lettuce Cups
Bacon and Avocado Lettuce Cups
Crayfish Salad
Beet Falafel
Pepper with Jeweled Feta
Zucchini and Feta Salad
Beet, Apple, and Cannellini Bean Soup
Chicken, Lima Bean, and Walnut Salad
Classic Spicy Hummus
Beet Hummus
Minted Pea Hummus
Spanish Chickpea and Spinach Soup
Chickpea and Hazelnut Salad
Shrimp Pho
Ricotta, Pear, and Walnut Salad
Skinny Spicy Bean Burgers
Chicken and Asparagus Salad
Grapefruit and Manchego Salad
Warm Halloumi Salad
Suppers
French Fish Stew
Luxury Fish Pie with Celeriac Topping
Zucchini Ribbons with Shrimp
Lamb and Pine Nut Meatballs with Moroccan Salad
Trout on Lime and Cilantro Crushed Peas
Pork with Apples and Shallots
Spicy Chicken and Lentils
Smoked Mackerel and Orange Salad
Eggplant with Lamb and Pomegranate
Steak with Crème Fraîche and Peppercorn Sauce
Harissa Chicken
Crab Cakes
Grilled Chicken on Cannellini Bean Mash
Stir-Fried Chicken with Lime and Coconut Milk
Spicy Turkey and Apricot Burgers with Salad
Foil-Steamed Fish
Skinny Chili
Braised Cod with Lettuce and Peas
Gingery Pork with Stir-Fried Vegetables
Quick and Easy
Five-Minute Breakfasts
Scrambled Eggs Three Ways
Cottage Cheese Three Ways
Avocado Three Ways
No-Fuss Lunches
Mediterranean Platter
Mexican Platter
No-Carb Ploughman’s Lunch
Cheesy Baked Beans
Peanut Butter Dip
Sardine Dip
Simple Suppers
Five Ways to Jazz Up a Chicken Breast
Three Ways to Jazz Up a Salmon Steak
Three Ways to Jazz Up a Lamb Chop
Three Ways with Zucchini Ribbons
Three Ways with Cauliflower Rice
Three Quick Soups
Guilt-Free Baking
Zucchini and Pumpkin Seed Muffins
Cheesy Scones
Guilt-Free Brownies
A Week to View on The Blood Sugar Diet
Day One
Day Two
Day Three
Day Four
Day Five
Day Six
Day Seven
Quick Soups
Blood Sugar Diet favorite ingredients
Appendix
Acknowledgments
About Michael Mosley
Notes
Index
To my wife, Clare, for her endless love and support
Foreword
In 2006 I was turning the pages of a scientific journal when one particular page leaped out at me. It was a study of weight loss (bariatric) surgery carried out on obese people with type 2 diabetes. This particular page showed a graph of blood sugar levels following the surgery. Within days of the operation the blood sugar levels had returned to normal and many were able to come off their medication.
This was a striking finding because it was believed that type 2 diabetes was a lifelong, irreversible disease. People are usually advised that they have a condition that requires first pills, then possibly insulin, and they must get used to living with diabetes.
But what really grabbed my attention was the fact that the return to normal blood sugar levels was so rapid. This fit in with a theory I was developing at the time: that type 2 diabetes is simply the result of too much fat in the liver and pancreas interfering with insulin production. The sudden return to normal blood sugars had nothing to do with the surgery itself, but merely that eating had suddenly been cut down. If this theory was right, type 2 diabetes should be able to be completely reversed by food restriction alone.
Science moves slowly and carefully. Any hypothesis has to be tested rigorously. Over the last decade my research team and others working at Newcastle University have been investigating, in detail, the underlying mechanisms. We have developed new ways of measuring fat inside the liver and pancreas using powerful magnetic resonance scanners.
Now we have completed careful studies, which have shown that people who really want to get rid of their type 2 diabetes can, in just 8 weeks, lose substantial amounts of weight and return blood sugar to normal or near normal. They remain free of diabetes provided they keep the weight off. We have shown that it is possible to reverse a disease that is still widely seen as irreversible.
So what is the long-term impact on overall health? Are there drawbacks for some people? To answer these and other important questions Diabetes UK has funded a large study in primary care that will run until 2018.
In the meantime, I am delighted that Dr. Michael Mosley is highlighting the importance of using weight loss to control blood sugar levels. His great skill is in communicating medical science and relating this to everyday life.
In this book about the biggest health problem of our time, he pulls together hard scientific information from reliable sources. He weaves a tapestry that conveys great depth of understanding illustrated by many individual stories. He makes the important point that there is not one diet which suits all, and describes alternatives in a helpful fashion. The relevance of increased daily physical activity as part of long-term avoidance of weight regain is nicely summarized, as is the important interaction between mind and body.
If you have type 2 diabetes and are interested in trying to regain full health, this is a book for you. If the condition runs in your family, then pass the book around the family. In the twenty-first century we individually have to counteract a phenomenon new to our society: for the first time in 200,000 years of homo sapiens’ evolution we need to learn how to avoid harm from the ever-present excess of food.
Dr. Roy Taylor
November 2015
Introduction
Medicine and nutrition are areas where it often seems that the truth
is constantly changing. New studies come along, sometimes reinforcing and sometimes undermining established wisdom. One moment fat is bad for you, the next it’s good. The problem is that unless you keep up with the latest research, and are able to critically appraise it, you may end up feeling very confused.
That’s why I decided to write an updated book and include some of the most recent studies and success stories.
It has been a year since I wrote the first edition of The 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet, a book which, like my previous book the FastDiet, has gone on to become an international bestseller.
I developed the Blood Sugar Diet to help people, like me, who had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, or who were at risk of diabetes, and wanted to use diet rather than drugs to slow or even reverse the progression of their disease. I realized it had the added attraction of helping anyone who wanted to lose weight, fast, but I didn’t realize how utterly life-changing it could be for so many. I include a few of them below.
Over the last year there have been even more studies showing how adopting a low-carbohydrate, Mediterranean-style way of eating, as I describe in this book, is one of the best ways to combat a range of different conditions. More on that in The Three Core Principles
chapter.
Results from a huge study, the largest of its kind ever undertaken, which were released in 2016, back up claims I make in this book that a rapid weight loss can be the best way to stem the apparently inexorable rise of type 2 diabetes. See more in the chapter on The Return of the VLCD (The Very Low Calorie Diet).
In early 2016 I also set up a website (thebloodsugardiet.com) where people share their experiences, post new recipes, and offer helpful advice and tips on how to do the diet.
Kay contacted me via the website to tell me about her thirty-eight-year-old husband’s remarkable transformation. Five years ago he was told he was a diabetic and put on medication and a low-fat diet. Neither worked. His blood sugar levels just kept on getting worse. He heard about the Blood Sugar Diet, started straightaway, and has not looked back. His blood sugar levels are now normal,
she said, and he is off all medication.
Because he is feeling so much better he has taken up running and recently ran his first half-marathon.
Others, like Sharon, forty-nine, who has been using steroid creams to treat severe eczema on her arms and body since she was a child, found that after a short while on the 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet she not only lost lots of weight but her eczema cleared. For the first time in my life I can use scented shower gel and normal soap, without causing agony.
She also no longer needs the anti-inflammatory medicines she was taking for severe pain in her feet. It’s completely changed my life.
I’ve also been contacted by women who have found that doing this diet has helped them get rid of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)—a condition that affects one in five women and can make getting pregnant difficult.
Cassie, whom you’ll meet on page 57, not only managed to lose 44 pounds and reverse her PCOS, but got pregnant after years of trying. I am delighted to say she has recently given birth to a pair of lovely girls. I’m 100 percent certain I have these little girls only because of the diet.
And then, of course, there are the financial savings you can make. Heidi, from Utah, says she was about to switch to a new, more powerful, blood sugar medication, when she heard about my book. Since starting on the diet she has lost over 40 pounds, and her blood sugars are so improved that she is saving herself $1,000 a month in medical bills.
I hope you enjoy this updated book and look forward to hearing more from you.
The Blood Sugar Crisis
Millions of us have high blood sugar levels—and many don’t know it.
Maybe you’re often thirsty or need to urinate frequently. Perhaps you have cuts that are slow to heal or you are unusually tired. Or, far more likely, you have no symptoms at all.
Yet raised blood sugar is very bad news. It speeds up the aging process, leads to type 2 diabetes, and increases your risk of heart disease and stroke.
This is a book about blood sugar. It is about the epidemic of type 2 diabetes that has engulfed the world in recent years. It is also about the insidious buildup of blood sugar that precedes type 2—prediabetes. This is a wake-up call. A warning.
But there’s no point in highlighting a problem unless you can do something about it. So if you have type 2 diabetes, I am going to introduce you to a diet that in just eight weeks can reverse it. If you have prediabetes,
I will show you how to stop it from progressing.
Why do I care? Because a few years ago I was diagnosed as a type 2 diabetic, my blood sugar out of control.
First, a bit of background. I trained as a doctor at the Royal Free Hospital in London. After receiving my degree, I pursued a career in journalism, and for the last thirty years I have been making science- and health-related documentaries for BBC Television—first behind the camera, more recently as a presenter. I’ve reported on many of the great medical issues of the last three decades and interviewed numerous experts on a huge range of topics. This experience has given me a unique perspective. So I’m not exaggerating when I say that the recent rise in diabesity (diabetes plus obesity) is truly scary.
To be honest, for most of my career I was not particularly interested in nutrition. There was next to nothing about the effects of food on the body in my medical training beyond the obvious eat less, get more exercise,
which may be true but by itself is completely unhelpful advice.
A decade ago if you had asked me what I knew about diets, I would have told you with great certainty that the best way to lose weight was gradually, and with a low-fat diet. A pound or two a week was best, because if you went faster you would wreck your metabolism and end up yo-yo dieting. I occasionally tried following my own advice, lost a little weight, then put it straight back on. I didn’t realize at the time just how bad my own advice was.
Then three years ago I went to see my doctor and had a routine blood test. A few days later she phoned to say that not only was my cholesterol too high but also my blood sugar was in the diabetic range. I was shocked and wondered what to do, because even then I knew that this is not a trivial disease.
I shouldn’t have been surprised. Blood sugar problems are often inherited, and when my father died at the relatively early age of seventy-four he was suffering from a wide range of diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart failure, prostate cancer, and what I now suspect was early dementia.
Rather than start on a lifetime of medication, I decided to make a documentary for the BBC in which I would seek out alternative ways to improve my health.
While making that documentary, Eat, Fast, Live Longer, I came across the work of scientists such as Dr. Mark Mattson at the National Institute on Aging and Dr. Krista Varady at the University of Illinois at Chicago, who were researching something called intermittent fasting.
Years of animal research and numerous human trials have shown the multiple benefits to be had from periodically reducing your calorie intake. These include not only weight loss but improvements in mood and memory.
So I went on what I called the 5:2 diet (eat normally five days a week, cut calories to around 600 on the other two days) and found it surprisingly manageable. I lost 20 pounds in twelve weeks, and my blood sugar levels and cholesterol levels returned to normal. After making the documentary I wrote a book, with Mimi Spencer, called the FastDiet, which included not only the science behind intermittent fasting but also a practical guide on how to do it. (For more, visit thefastdiet.co.uk.)
Our book was not aimed at diabetics, however, and I wondered at the time if what had happened to me was unusual. So I decided to look more closely into the science linking calories, carbohydrates, obesity, insulin, and diabetes. That quest has resulted in this book.
Why Now?
Standard nutritional advice is under attack like never before. The age-old instruction to eat low-fat
has been seriously undermined by numerous studies that show it’s rarely effective and people who go on it often find