Advised head GP re weight loss and Dia... - Fasting and Furious

Fasting and Furious

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Advised head GP re weight loss and Diabetes

S11m profile image
S11mVolunteer 70lb IF20
12 Replies

Hi, all.

Our local head GP was the speaker at a meeting I attended today. I told him about this site (I hope you read this Dr David!).

He had not heard of Dr David Unwin (the UK GP who saves the NHS tens of thousands of pounds a year on diabetes drugs through Low carb).

I feel that my body-fat percentage is now stable at 15% (and I do not often "feel the need" to eat after 14:00).

Here is a video by Dr Sten Ekberg re LCHF and IF for resetting the body's fat-regulation weight loss:

youtu.be/SyrV7fGeYu8

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S11m profile image
S11m
Volunteer 70lb IF20
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12 Replies
NannyEJ profile image
NannyEJ

Unbelievable that your head GP had not heard of Dr David Unwin and his groundbreaking work with overweight diabetes patients. Makes you wonder just what they are reading? What was he speaking about at the meeting?

S11m profile image
S11mVolunteer 70lb IF20 in reply to NannyEJ

An aunt and uncle of mine were doctors - and they never thought about anything else - even months into retirement the would read medical journals.

They do have compulsory "Continued Professional Development" for doctors now - but, I think that, decades ago, some doctors never opened a medical book or publication after they qualified.

NannyEJ profile image
NannyEJ in reply to S11m

I saw a video of David Unwin giving a lecture in Australia about his methods and successes with patients. He is trying his best to get the message out so let’s hope all our GPs can learn and get on board. It is a life changing/saving strategy as well as saving the NHS loads of money.

S11m profile image
S11mVolunteer 70lb IF20 in reply to NannyEJ

I think that Dr Unwin over-simplifies everything... but it is great that there is an NHS-approved UK GP that advocates Low-Carb. (Even if he has not got his head round High-Fat and IF.)

NannyEJ profile image
NannyEJ in reply to S11m

I think that for many people in at risk groups (obese, prediabetic, high BP etc) just going low carb may be quite a difficult transition to start with. High fat and IF may be a stretch too far for many. If they can achieve health improvements by making the least number of changes then that has to be good and will perhaps be a strategy they can live with for life. I think Dr Unwin does advocate a full English breakfast (without toast or beans) and this is quite high fat.

Stoozie profile image
StoozieAdministrator

UK GPs have to evidence an average of 50hrs/year of CPD, but it could be split as, for example 25hrs learning on courses and 25 on case studies applying this to their own patients.

They also have to evidence that the CPD is proportional and relevant to their scope of work and it's severity in terms of mortality and morbidity.

I'll put that more starkly and simply: they can learn for say 25 hrs a year, but it should be on the things which are limiting the lives of the majority of their patients, and which they can measure success in.

Dietary intervention is very difficult to prescribe, measure or get people to adhere to.

S11m profile image
S11mVolunteer 70lb IF20 in reply to Stoozie

In most industries, CPD is used as an excuse for a tax-deductible holiday!

Dr Unwin has recorded and measures the benefits of low carb - and the benefit (to the NHS) is a saving of tens of thousands of pounds (in his practice) that would have been spent on diabetes medication.

Pieplanter profile image
Pieplanter in reply to Stoozie

Hi Stoozie. Are GPs trained in nutrition? Isn't this an expert area for trained Nutritionists? 😊

S11m profile image
S11mVolunteer 70lb IF20 in reply to Pieplanter

I think that they get less than a week on nutrition.

One problem is that what they get taught is the SAD/WHO/NHS guidelines - which is high-carb low fat as per Ancel Keys biased study.

Diabetes and obesity are so common that they might not refer patients to a specialist?

Some doctors refer their patients here - Health Unlocked.

Pieplanter profile image
Pieplanter

Hi S11m. How do you measure your body-fat percentage? 😊

S11m profile image
S11mVolunteer 70lb IF20 in reply to Pieplanter

I use a fat-calliper, four-fold measurement:

healthunlocked.com/fasting-...

Pieplanter profile image
Pieplanter

Thank you. Very useful :-)

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