Type 2 diabetes rates are skyrocketing today, but what if the solution isn’t more medicine, but changing what’s on your plate? Imagine being able to reduce, or even completely reverse, type 2 diabetes with the right foods and habits—no endless prescriptions necessary. If you’re ready for a real transformation, read on for evidence-based tips and inspiring insights from world-renowned fasting expert Dr. Jason Fung.
Key Takeaways
- Type 2 diabetes is a dietary disease and can often be reversed by changing what you eat.
- Relying solely on medications like insulin may worsen insulin resistance over time.
- Choosing the right foods and adopting healthy habits can help you achieve drug-free diabetes remission.
- Incorporating non-starchy vegetables, healthy fats, lean proteins, and low-sugar fruits is essential.
- Intermittent fasting, exercise, and quitting unhealthy snacking are three daily habits that turbocharge your results.
1. Understand the Real Cause: It’s a Dietary Disease
The number one mistake in fighting type 2 diabetes? Treating a dietary disease with drugs instead of food. Many people manage blood sugar with insulin or other medications, but if the underlying problem is what you eat, medication is just a short-term Band-Aid. The real goal is to fix the root cause—high blood sugar and insulin resistance—by changing your diet.
2. The Vicious Cycle of Insulin Overuse
Did you know that using more insulin to manage type 2 diabetes can actually make the problem worse? While it lowers blood sugar temporarily, it also increases your body’s resistance to insulin, creating a vicious cycle. Less medication—when guided by healthy lifestyle changes—typically means your diabetes is actually improving. The key is to lower insulin, not just manage sugar spikes.
3. Five Foods to Eat Daily for Reversal
3.1. Greens and Non-Starchy Vegetables
Load up your plate with greens! Broccoli, kale, cabbage, beans, zucchini, and other non-starchy veggies are fiber-rich and low in sugar. You can add mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, cauliflower, and eggplant for variety. Try making soups or broths with carrots and peas to sneak in vitamins and antioxidants. The more green, the better!
3.2. Healthy, Natural Fats
Forget low-fat diets—healthy fats are your friends when consumed in moderation. Opt for natural, unprocessed options like olive oil, coconut oil, real butter, and a bit of cheese (but not too much). These fats help keep you full, steady your blood sugar, and support overall metabolic health.
3.3. Low-Glycemic Fruits: Apples, Pears, and Berries
Dr. Fung recommends apples and pears for their minerals, fiber, and vitamins. Berries—strawberries, blueberries, raspberries—are particularly potent due to their antioxidants and low sugar content. One or two servings of mixed berries a day can lower your diabetes and heart disease risk while satisfying your sweet tooth.
3.4. Healthy Proteins
Focus on clean, whole proteins such as eggs, fish (especially oily varieties like salmon, tuna, and mackerel), unprocessed meats, and full-fat yogurt. These proteins are harder for your body to convert to fat, help you feel full, and won’t spike your blood sugar. Two eggs a day are fine, but avoid processed meats like bacon and sausage.
3.5. Zero-Sugar Snacks: Nuts and Dark Chocolate
When you need a snack, reach for unsalted nuts like almonds, walnuts, or peanuts. They’re packed with healthy fats and essential nutrients without raising your blood sugar. A small piece of 70% (or higher) dark chocolate is also okay occasionally and can be a satisfying treat.
4. The Three Golden Daily Habits for Diabetes Reversal
4.1. Intermittent Fasting
Fasting is an ancient, powerful tool—free, flexible, and effective. By spacing out your meals or skipping meals altogether, you allow your body time to burn off excess blood sugar and fat. Intermittent fasting not only helps normalize blood sugars, it also triggers a process called autophagy—literally your body’s way of cleaning out old, damaged cells to improve function. Dr. Fung notes that fasting, used wisely, can help cure about half of people with type 2 diabetes!
4.2. Move Your Body Every Day
Exercise doesn’t need to be complicated. A brisk morning walk, a few minutes of movement after meals, or some regular workouts can lower your HbA1c (a key diabetes marker). Just getting your blood moving improves insulin sensitivity and helps keep glucose levels steady.
4.3. Avoid Unhealthy Snacking
Breaking the habit of frequent snacking, especially on sugary or processed foods, is crucial. Constant snacking keeps insulin levels elevated, locking your body in fat-storage mode. If you genuinely feel hungry between meals, nuts or a piece of dark chocolate are better options, but learn to let your body use up stored energy between meals too.
5. Busting the Juice Fasting Myth
Juice fasting sounds healthy, but most juices are loaded with sugar! While vegetable-based juices like cucumber or kale can be okay occasionally, it’s safer and far more effective to stick to intermittent fasting with water, tea, or black coffee. This helps lower your body’s glucose without adding unnecessary sugar.
6. Success Stories: Real-Life Diabetes Reversals
Dr. Fung shares inspiring patient stories—one man went from over 250 pounds and 55 units of insulin per day to drug-free normal blood sugars within six weeks. Another woman dropped 20 pounds, and her A1C (average blood sugar) returned to normal in just three months. These results are not just possible, they’re becoming increasingly common as people shift to food-focused therapies.
7. Why This Works: The Science Behind Food and Fasting
Eating right reverses the buildup of glucose in your bloodstream by letting your body use stored energy. Proteins and healthy fats trigger satiety hormones (like peptide YY and cholecystokinin), making you feel satisfied longer and naturally eat less. Fasting and diet changes also lower insulin, break insulin resistance, and support autophagy (the Nobel Prize-winning science of cellular cleanup).
8. This Isn’t Just for Diabetes: Overall Health Benefits
Following these principles doesn’t just help diabetes—it also reduces risks for cancer, heart disease, strokes, blindness, kidney issues, and more. You’ll feel better, lose weight, and protect your long-term health—all while eating real, delicious foods.
Conclusion
Reversing type 2 diabetes is within your grasp—and it’s not about endless medications or drastic surgeries. Focus on the foods you eat, embrace intermittent fasting, move your body, and say goodbye to constant snacking. By following these habits, you can take control of your health, shed excess weight, and possibly put diabetes into remission. Start today and give your body the chance to heal naturally—the results could truly change your life.
Source: Dr. Jason Fung