A 12-Week Diabetes and Prediabetes Program with Functional Medicine
Medicine can be reactive, and doctors tend to focus on what they identify as the biggest problem. In diabetes care this translates to focusing on blood sugar numbers that are high, with the remedy being a new medication or increasing the dose of a current medication. Though medications play an important role by lowering blood sugar numbers and decreasing the risk of complications like heart disease, they can be expensive. To pay for these medications many Canadians either use private insurance or pay out-of-pocket. Data from 2020 showed that Canadians with type 2 diabetes spent 3% of after tax income on prescription medications, this is up from 1% in 2010. The rising cost of medications used to treat diabetes is associated with an increasing trend of treatment non-adherence, resulting in higher blood sugar numbers and increased risk of diabetes associated complications.
As a doctor of naturopathic medicine, I believe that medications play a role in the management of diabetes. Medications not only lower A1c and fasting blood sugar, but also decrease the risk of complications from diabetes like heart attack, stroke, kidney disease, blindness, neuropathy, and amputations. I also believe that medications should be part of a plan, not the whole plan. Both Diabetes Canada and the American Association of Diabetes publish treatment guidelines which recommend providing guidance on nutrition, exercise, stress management, weight loss, and to stop smoking. However, patients often report that in the brief window of time they have with their GP medication management is often at the forefront. If there is a conversation about non-medication therapies, it tends to be a “you need to” statement.
“You need to lose weight…”
“You need to eat better…”
“You need to exercise more…”
These comments are not helpful as they provide an actionable plan, produce feelings of shame, and erode the relationship between doctor and patient.
So here is some information that may not always be discussed.
The use of intensive lifestyle intervention for type 2 diabetes and prediabetes can produce significant and meaningful changes in blood sugar control with fewer medications. For example you can decrease A1c by 1-2% with nutrition therapy, and ~1% with a combination of aerobic and resistance exercise. This is powerful and significant, not just because it lowers A1c, but can create a lasting health behaviour that can improve metabolic and cardiovascular health.
Guidance on nutrition, exercise, weight loss, stress management, and non-traditional therapies like botanical and nutrient supplements can be highly individualized. Diet for example can be highly personal, with cultural or religious tie-ins. Telling someone to eat 50 grams of carbohydrates per meal is good information, but it is not practical and can create confusion about what someone should eat. Instead offering detailed nutrition guidance that includes a meal plan, grocery list, and cooking instructions helps to reduce the confusion about what to eat.
To help remedy this gap I created a 12-week diabetes intensive protocol that is designed for treatment of type 2 diabetes and prediabetes, as well as diabetes prevention. This 12-week intensive program offers an in-depth look at your metabolic and cardiovascular health with specialty lab testing, individualized treatment plans that provide 7 day meal planning (with grocery lists and cooking instructions), instruction for both aerobic and resistance exercise, stress management techniques using heart rate variability and mindfulness tools, and guidance on evidence-based botanical and nutrient supplements to support your metabolic health. Over the course of 5 visits you get an evidence-driven and functional medicine approach to improving your blood sugar readings and metabolic health.
