1. < Diabetes & Endocrine System

What's all this talk about Intermittent Fasting ?

Posted by pumaguy79 @pumaguy79, Sep 22, 2023

I'm a Type 2 Diabetic for 38 years now. Male, age 78. I resisted insulin all my life. Used to be on a variety of oral meds, but just use Glipizide now. Stopped Januvia(expensive) almost two years ago. The secret ? INTERMITTENT FASTING(IF). A struggle at first, but easy peasy now after 3 years. Nice weight loss, fewer meds and great reduction in joint pain. Most recommend 16 hours-no food and 8 hours , eat healthy but no restrictions on portions. Sounds daunting at first, but here's how it works. Stop eating by 8 pm. Sleep from 11pm to 8 am( that's 12 hours...mostly sleeping) Skip break fast. Black coffee or tea okay. Lunch time at noon( maybe a bit later) ! Eat until 8 pm. Then back to fasting.

Give it a couple of weeks and see you results. Your biome will love it. Your joints will quickly respond. In a short while you may get "low" glucose readings, leading to med reduction or elimination.

Best to talk to your doctor so that good tracking and observations are achieved.

This is, without exaggeration, a life changing practice. Once it becomes a routine( there's plenty of incentives), it become part of you, a life habit.

You'll see !

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Diabetes & Endocrine System Support Group.

bunnybear | @bunnybear | Sep 24, 2023

Is it ok to put milk in your coffee? Or does that mess up the fasting?

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1 reply
bunnybear | @bunnybear | Sep 24, 2023

Can I put milk in my coffee and tea during the fasting time, mostly in the early morning? I drink 2 cups every morning.

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1 reply
reillyg1013 | @reillyg1013 | Sep 24, 2023
In reply to @bunnybear "Does this work for late evening eats? I could probably confine my eating to 2pm to..." + (show)
@bunnybear

Does this work for late evening eats? I could probably confine my eating to 2pm to 10 pm and then just coffee and tea the rest of the time. I ask b/c it seems logical that you’d put on more weigh in the evenings b/c you are naturally more sedentary then. I have been pre-diabetic for years and done nothing about it. I have gained about 15-20 pounds in the past 2 years.

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Bunnybear
Due to my work schedule, those were the same hours I did IF and I had very good results. It wasn’t until I got Covid that IF stopped working for me.
Good luck!

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pumaguy79 | @pumaguy79 | Sep 24, 2023
In reply to @bunnybear "Does this work for late evening eats? I could probably confine my eating to 2pm to..." + (show)
@bunnybear

Does this work for late evening eats? I could probably confine my eating to 2pm to 10 pm and then just coffee and tea the rest of the time. I ask b/c it seems logical that you’d put on more weigh in the evenings b/c you are naturally more sedentary then. I have been pre-diabetic for years and done nothing about it. I have gained about 15-20 pounds in the past 2 years.

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All literature and commentary suggests ANY 16 hour fast plus 8 hour with food will work. Of course, the 8 hours can't be all sweets and chips and fats, etc. Exercise and a healthy diet go hand in hand with IF.
Good luck.

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pumaguy79 | @pumaguy79 | Sep 24, 2023
In reply to @bunnybear "Can I put milk in my coffee and tea during the fasting time, mostly in the..." + (show)
@bunnybear

Can I put milk in my coffee and tea during the fasting time, mostly in the early morning? I drink 2 cups every morning.

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Bunnybear...NOPE...no dairy or nondairy creamers...no sweeteners.

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1 reply
hopethereisnothing | @hopethereisnothing | Jan 18 6:50am

That's great. I am (39, F) a recently discovered prediabetic with HbA1c of 5.8 and alomost 10 kg overweight. I don't want to start any medications now and I don't like the idea of doing keto. I was considering IF to control blood sugar and lose weight. Your positive experience is encouraging for me. I think I will start with 12 hour fasting due to having my final degree exam soon and I can't do extreme fasting while studying, then I may shift to 16/8 after finishing the exam.

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cpd54 | @cpd54 | Jan 19 6:29am

Thank you for posting your experience. I do 16/8 IF and realize its benefits. I started it because of GERD and not eating close to bedtime. I don’t eat after 6 so pushing that breakfast to 10 or so wasn’t hard for me. But since I’m not diabetic I didn’t know it was helping my glucose levels that much. I am prediabetic so I’m excited to hear IF will help with that!

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seapen | @seapen | Jan 19 8:25am
In reply to @bunnybear "Is it ok to put milk in your coffee? Or does that mess up the fasting?" + (show)
@bunnybear

Is it ok to put milk in your coffee? Or does that mess up the fasting?

Jump to this post

Milk and or sugar does mess up the fast. Try weak black coffee and you will get used to it.

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seapen | @seapen | Jan 19 8:27am
In reply to @pumaguy79 "Bunnybear...NOPE...no dairy or nondairy creamers...no sweeteners." + (show)
@pumaguy79

Bunnybear...NOPE...no dairy or nondairy creamers...no sweeteners.

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I agree.

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monstermama36 | @monstermama36 | Jan 20 6:23am

I was never diagnosed with T2D but with Reactive Hypo that we now know was secondary to hyperparathyroidism. I was put on the autoimmune protocol diet and that took my A1C from 5.6 to 4.3 within a few months. Following that way of eating, within a few weeks I couldn’t even look at food before 6pm so intermittent fasting just happened. The autoimmune protocol diet is low glycemic index.

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