"People who have had Type  diabetes for up to  years can reverse their condition   Keeping weight down means Type  diabetes stays reversed A new study from Newcastle University has shown that people who reverse their diabetes and then keep their weight down remain free of diabetes.  In addition the team found that even patients who have had Type  diabetes for up to  years can reverse their condition. The study published today in Diabetes Care is the latest research from worldrenowned Professor Roy Taylor Professor of Medicine and Metabolism at Newcastle University who also works within Newcastle Hospitals. The research is part of a growing body of evidence showing that people with Type  diabetes who successfully lose weight can reverse their condition because fat is removed from their pancreas returning insulin production to normal. Reversing diabetes A previous study led by Professor Taylor published in  showed that diabetes could be reversed by a very low calorie diet. This caused international interest but the study was very short as it was only eight weeks and the question remained whether the diabetes would stay away. In this new study  volunteers with Type  diabetes embarked on the same diet of  to  calories a day. Participants lost on average  kilograms  just over  stone. Over the next  months they did not regain any weight. The group included many people with longer duration diabetes defined as more than  years and ranging up to  years. Overall  patients who had had diabetes for less than  years reversed their condition.  months later they remained diabetes free. In fact after  months a thirteenth patient had reversed their diabetes.  Though the volunteers lost weight they remained overweight or obese but they had lost enough weight to remove the fat out of the pancreas and allow normal insulin production. Professor Roy Taylor said What we have shown is that it is possible to reverse your diabetes even if you have had the condition for a long time up to around  years. If you have had the diagnosis for longer than that then dont give up hope  major improvement in blood sugar control is possible. The study also answered the question that people often ask me  if I lose the weight and keep the weight off will I stay free of diabetes The simple answer is yes Interestingly even though all our volunteers remained obese or overweight the fat did not drift back to clog up the pancreas.  This supports our theory of a Personal Fat Threshold. If a person gains more weight than they personally can tolerate then diabetes is triggered but if they then lose that amount of weight then they go back to normal. Individuals vary in how much weight they can carry without it seeming to affect their metabolism  dont forget that  of severely obese people do not have diabetes. The bottom line is that if a person really wants to get rid of their Type  diabetes they can lose weight keep it off and return to normal.  This is good news for people who are very motivated to get rid of their diabetes. But it is too early to regard this as suitable for everyone. That is a separate question and a major study is underway to answer this. The study  Participants in this study had Type  diabetes for between six months and  years. The team showed that Type  diabetes could be reversed even in people who had the condition for  years. The team were able to identify in advance participants who would not respond to adequate weight loss by reversing their diabetes as at the start they had almost absent insulin production from the pancreas.  The study was funded by a National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre NIHR BRC grant. A larger trial involving  patients is already underway. This will examine how successfully people can reverse their diabetes through weight loss simply under the care of their family doctor and nurse. It is being funded by Diabetes UK. The research was possible through Newcastle Academic Health Partners a collaboration involving Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Northumberland Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust and Newcastle University. This partnership harnesses worldclass expertise to ensure patients benefit sooner from new treatments diagnostics and prevention strategies. The diet    diet shakes per day and  grams of nonstarchy vegetables taking in between  and kcal a day for  weeks   volunteers then gradually returned to eating normal food over the next two weeks with very careful instruction on how much to eat   volunteers were seen once a month and supported with an individualized weight maintenance programme over the next  months   to keep weight steady after the weight loss they were eating around one third less than before the study CASE STUDY Allan Tutty  from Sunderland transformed his health by taking part in the study. He said I was diagnosed with Type  diabetes around May  during routine checks by my GP but my family and I were in disbelief because I had no physical symptoms which led me to consider I had the condition.  While I didnt feel fat I was fat  on the inside. Ive since seen a scan of my liver and you can see the fat around it. I took part in the research spending eight weeks on an calorie a day diet which was really tough over Christmas and New Year but I was determined to complete it. The payoff for me  the possible reversal of my diabetes  was more than worth the effort. In the two months I lost two and a half stones and my pancreas was working within normal limits. With my diabetes in remission I havent looked back.  I eat normal foods though I eat less than I used to and I enjoy takeaways and chocolate but not on a regular basis so I have maintained my lower weight it has been a total lifestyle change. In fact my life has changed completely thanks to this research.  REFERENCE Very low calorie diet and  months of weight stability in Type  diabetes Pathophysiologic changes in responders and nonresponders. Sarah Steven Keiren G Hollingsworth Ahmad AlMrabeh Leah Avery Benjamin Aribisala Muriel Caslake Roy Taylor.  Diabetes Care. Doi .dc Links Previous study http Very low calorie diet  the diet http NIHR http"