Fasting has garnered interest in recent times, especially in curing Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes is a chronic condition which happens as a result of the body’s inability to produce insulin. This insulin is the hormone necessary for regulating blood sugar levels. Traditionally, the management of type 1 diabetes has relied on insulin therapy.
But lately, discussions have emerged on the potential benefits of fasting as a complementary approach to management and even, cure.
In this blog post, we delve into the question: Can fasting cure type 1 diabetes?
Read on to find out what current research and anecdotal evidence says.
Type 1 Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition. In type 1 diabetes, the body encounters difficulties in handling glucose – a form of sugar needed for energy.
Simply put, when we eat, our body breaks down food into glucose. Insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas, helps glucose enter the cells for energy.
However, with this condition, the immune system suffers a malfunction which causes it to attack and damage the pancreas, specifically the cells responsible for making insulin.
As a result, the body doesn’t produce enough insulin. So, without sufficient insulin, glucose can’t enter the cells effectively, leading to high levels of sugar in the blood.
This excess sugar causes various problems, affecting energy levels and overall health. People with Type 1 diabetes typically experience increased thirst, frequent urination, fatigue, and weight loss.
This condition requires daily management with insulin injections or an insulin pump. Unlike some other types of diabetes, Type 1 diabetes is typically diagnosed in childhood or adolescence.
It’s a lifelong condition that requires careful monitoring of blood sugar levels and insulin administration.
Also Read: 7 Signs of Gestational Diabetes in the Third Trimester
Fasting and T1 Diabetes
In the past decade, there has been an upsurge in research regarding the benefits of fasting. Fasting in this case is deliberate abstinence from food over extended periods like a prolonged water fast.
Aside from complete abstinence, there is intermittent fasting which is a pattern of feeding with restricted periods.
In intermittent fasting, a person can decide to eat normally on one day while restricting meals the following day.
The restriction could be to eat nothing at all or to drastically cut out calories, sometimes down to 500 calories. Experts call this alternate-day fasting.
Still, in intermittent fasting, a person can follow an eating widow for say 8 hours while fasting the rest of the remaining 16 hours.
This is called 16:8. There are other patterns like 20:4. The idea is to restrict meal times and get the body into fasting mode after some hours.
While IF is not a diet on its own, there are some diets which mimic fasting like the ketogenic diet which has gained prominence over the years.
The keto diet drastically cuts out carbohydrate which is the typical fuel for the body when converted into sugar.
It follows a recommendation of high fat up to 70% and moderate protein of about 20% intake. Promoters of this diet recommend that a small percentage of carbs in the diet should come from low-sugar vegetables like cruciferous ones.
The ketogenic has been the rave because it follows the mechanism of fasting thereby mimicking fasting.
When the body no longer uses sugar as its energy source, it begins to tap into the fat stores in the body.
As a diet that experts recommend to be high in healthy fat, the body uses fat as a source of energy turning it to ketones through a process known as ketosis.
Why are all these explanations necessary? Because fasting is not just black and white. Sometimes one still gets to eat while tricking the body.
The benefits and mechanisms are similar especially when it is the kind of fasting that drastically limits carbs and sugar. Some folks have made claims of using prolonged fasting, intermittent fasting and diets like keto to lose weight and cure chronic diseases like Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.
Also Read: What Are the 6 Things You Can Do to Prevent Diabetes?
Fasting cure: myth or fact
Some people with diabetes fast with the belief it will provide metabolic control and other benefits.
Fasting is thought to influence insulin sensitivity, a key factor in diabetes management.
Some studies suggest that intermittent fasting may improve insulin resistance, potentially aiding in better blood sugar control.
Additionally, fasting has been linked to autophagy, a cellular process that removes damaged cells and promotes regeneration, which could have implications for diabetes management.
Although the American Diabetic Association okays medical nutrition therapy for diabetes management, it does not recommend fasting.
Fasting may have some general health benefits. For example, it reduces inflammation, helps with weight loss, and lowers cholesterol. It may also improve the way the body utilizes glucose.
The ADA however notes that if you’re overweight or obese, weight loss can help lower your A1c level (a gauge of your blood sugar control over the last). One study also concluded that fasting may also affect how much insulin medication a diabetic needs.
People with type 1 diabetes under good glycemic control might be able to safely perform a prolonged fasting period with a limited risk of severe dysglycemia.
Another study confirmed that fasting shows some promise including minimizing the risk of hypoglycemia, reducing glycaemic variability, and improving fat metabolism in T1DM. The study however warns that “careful consideration be given as “complications may arise, such as severe hypoglycemia, hyperglycemia, dehydration, and diabetic ketoacidosis”
The liver which is one organ diabetes has a direct impact on the most also benefits from some fasting. It gets a break from using glycogen which takes about 12 hours. It burns fat instead.
According to research by Valter Longo of gerontology and biological sciences at USC Dornsife, “periodic cycles of fasting seem to reprogram pancreatic cells and restore insulin production.”
This research was conducted on a “fasting mimicking” diet according to the publication. The publication states that “The fasting-like diet promotes the growth of new insulin-producing pancreatic cells that reduce symptoms of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes in mice.”
According to the research findings, by activating the regeneration of pancreatic cells, mice were rescued from late-stage Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.
Insulin production from the pancreatic cells of humans with Type 1 Diabetes was also reactivated and damaged cells were replaced with functional ones.
The study showed a remarkable reversal of both types of diabetes in mice placed on the fasting-mimicking diet for four days each week.
“They regained healthy insulin production, reduced insulin resistance and demonstrated more stable levels of blood glucose. This was the case even for mice in the later stages of the disease.”
In the same study, which examined pancreatic cell cultures from human donors in cells from Type 1 diabetes patients, fasting also increased expression of the Ngn3 protein and accelerated insulin production.
Before incorporating fasting into a diabetes management plan, consult your healthcare team. Medical supervision is crucial to ensure that you do fasting safely in a way that does not compromise your health.
Also Read: 5 Foods to Avoid If You Have Diabetes and Why
Conclusion
While fasting may offer some potential benefits in managing type 1 diabetes, it is not a cure for the condition.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition where the immune system attacks and destroys insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. It is inconclusive whether fasting can address the underlying cause of this immune response.
The emergence of fasting as a topic of interest in this chronic cognition underscores the importance of ongoing research and the need for individualized approaches to care.
As with any health-related decision, you should consult with your health caregiver. They will help you ascertain if this is the right measure you can follow.
Are you currently having any of the symptoms of diabetes and you’ve confirmed with your doctor and they said it’s actually diabetes? We’ve got a solution for you. Here’s a clinically certified diabetes product that can help you organically crush your sugar level in 90 days or less. Today, you can also book a session with us via this email address, nutriticare@gmail.com to learn more about how to create a better diet plan. We’ve got a longer list of foods to avoid for different types of diabetes.
