- Discover why Betsy wanted more than lifelong diabetes management. After living with type 2 diabetes for roughly 15 years and using multiple medications, she began looking for a different approach to her metabolic health.
- Understand what changed during her fasting journey. Betsy reports losing more than 60 pounds, completing six monthly fasting-mimicking diet cycles, and maintaining blood sugar readings in a range that allowed her to be off diabetes medication at the time of the interview.
- Uncover how better metabolic health changed what Betsy felt capable of doing. At age 65, she describes completing a demanding hike in Bryce Canyon that she does not believe she could have managed a year earlier.
Full Transcript
Introduction to the Longevity CEO and Betsyu2019s Story 0:00
How many cycles of fasting-mimicking diets you've done now consecutively? Done six. Okay, so a total of six months, you have done once every month for six month. And how many medications for diabetes now you take after? This is the Longevity CEO, where we explore the science of metabolism, cellular renewal, and the future of longevity. Hi, everyone. This is Dr. Joseph Anton, and I'm here with you to talk with Betsy, who has been trying the diabetes remission program. And probably Betsie, you have remitted your diabetes.
I just heard that you are on no more medication, which is amazing to think about how the disease was prescribed and thought of as a progressive disease. A few months later, we're talking about you being free of medication, but I want to, I wanna ask you about all of that. First of all, would you mind introducing yourself and what do you do?
Diabetes History and Prior Medications 1:01
And then I'm going to ask a few questions about the Domilio's remission program. Sure. My name is Betsy Abney. I work in a financial services industry and education. And let me see, i live in Texas. But I just got back from Utah where it's cool for vacation. Fantastic. And how long have you been living with diabetes? Probably 15 years or so. And, how many drugs were you taking for it? I was taking two. I've always tried to keep myself really tight control. My A1Cs have never been really high. Six has really been high for me.
It was 8.1 when I found out I'm diabetic. But I was taking Metformin forever. And then I also have tried some of the various and sundry shot ones by Durian and some those off and on. Recently took, oh, what's the really popular one right now? That's Wycoving and something else. Oh, yes, but it made me so nauseous. I couldn't even get past the 0.25. Yeah, my doctor's like, oh, this will help you lose weight.
Six Cycles of Fasting-Mimicking Diet 2:25
No, no, it's, like I know I was so sick on it. And if every time I tried to increase it, I could work, function on. So, so I stayed on the point to five and yeah, didn't help in. How many cycles of fasting-mimicking diets have you done now consecutively? I've done six. Okay, so a total of six months, you've then once every month for six month. Right. And how many medications for diabetes now you take after? Zero. Now I was doing some intermittent fasting prior to that, but this is easier than intermittent and fasting, I will tell you.
But I'm on no medications now. Fantastic. And are you staying within the program to maintain? Yes, that's the thing I found the most is that it has really helped me with controlling without medication, still controlling where my diabetes numbers are.
Stopping Diabetes Medication and Tracking Results 3:34
So I am in the fives now, I don't want to freak anybody out, but I mean the five and have been for My last blood test. I have another one coming up in October, so we'll see where that goes. And you said you just came back from a vacation and you walked and visited the parks. Is that something that you were able to do last year? Oh, I would say a year ago. Definitely. Probably could have done the little level by the river walks, but we did one. in Bryce Canyon, where you go down the Navajo Loop and up the Queens Garden Trail, it's three miles, 800 feet, over 800-feet change, and on one side over 650 change over the other.
It was tough. There was really tough, they said it was a three-mile hike and it should take you three hours. And I went, why would three mile take three hour? Yeah, I would not have survived this previously. I don't know how they'd have gotten me out of that canyon, but I'm not sure I'd would have got down actually.
Vacation Mobility and Weight Loss Progress 4:46
What was the weight difference before you started intermittent fasting and then the fasting-remaking diet versus today? I've lost just over 60 pounds. Wow. They've been kind of stable for a while, but even with no more weight loss, my blood sugar numbers have been really good. Betsy, are you talking to your doctor or are doing this directly with the diabetes transmission program? No, I actually talk to my doctor. I have both rheumatologists I deal with and a hepatologist because I also have liver disease.
And then I'm moved from my endocrinologist to my general practitioner, because my endocannologist wanted me to stay on medication. And I said, well, I wanted to do fastening and you can't do that on Ozempic because it makes you sick. They were like, no, we want you to say on the Ozmpic. I'm like no. No, how I want it to be the fasting. wanted it lose the weight. Wanted to get control of my body.
Doctor Discussion on Fasting vs. Medication 5:53
Isn't that amazing? I mean, I am an MD-PhD and we get trained to give drugs for people, although the drugs are not getting people out of diabetes, right? They just, actually for most people what people don't realize, they push you forward in the disease, because by improving insulin sensitivity and getting or producing more, depending on which drug you take, you're shifting more carbs. They don' disappear in there, and they go to the cells and then they get more stocked into reserve and you increase insulin resistance and then you need more medication and more mitigation.
And, you know, we're talking with you, We just launched the program a little, a few months ago, and we still see some doctors that jump on it, say, my mission in life is to help people be out of diabetes. In some, doctors, they panic, right? They're like, no, I should, have been taught to give you the meds. You should stay on your med. And they forget that the reason you're here is because of overeating of insulin resistance, because the aging process on top of that, and because you lose muscle, right?
These are the three causes of diabetes. There's genetic predisposition for sure, but it's the ageing process, losing muscle with age and lifestyle change and weight gain and insulin-resistance. And the wagoveno-zempig is not going to reverse your age. The wogovenozempic is going optimize your cell and rejuvenate them. When you do the fasting-mimicking diet. You're rejuvenating yourself. This is why fasting is so powerful. It's not just the weight loss, but the cellular rejumination. You are younger biologically, so you deal better with diabetes.
That protects your muscle. And so, you keep burning these carbs, and you don't lose the muscle, And I'm happy you're able to walk and go visit so many sites.
Remission, Encouragement, and Closing Remarks 7:29
In number three, obviously you lose weight fasting, You lose a lot of weight with it. So, it's hitting at the core of the disease. in your case, a full remission. So I want to congratulate you because it takes focus, it take will, right? And it a pioneering mindset to say, you know what? I don't want you to addict me to the drugs for the rest of my life. I just want it to go back and reverse it in a natural way. And fasting lived with us for all our lifetime. It was the checks and balances, we gain weight, with fast we lose it.
Now it's just gain, gain and get diabetic and then die. and we're reversing that paradigm today. So I really wanna thank you for your time. I'd really want to thank for you courage to testify here to help others and inspire them to join the program. And I hope you stay out of diabetes for the rest of your life. Thank you. That is my goal and intention. And I really want to encourage people. My last birthday during this vacation, I turned 65. So this is the place where they tell you, you often can't reverse.
You know, he's had it too long. He's gotten too old. you can do it. Yes. Well, appreciate you very, very much. This is life changing. Thank for your courage today. Sure. I hope everyone is encouraged and will go forward with it. I think it really does help. Thank you very much. Thanks for listening to The Longevity CEO. Follow the show and join us as we rethink what it means to live longer and healthier lives.
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