Dr Michael Mosley becomes pre-diabetic within 2 weeks on Aussie diet

The Covid-19 pandemic has changed our eating habits – and it may be leading to more than just a harmless couple of extra kilos.

Dr Michael Mosley has a new series on SBS: Australia’s Health Revolution with Dr Michael Mosley. Picture: Supplied

Type 2 diabetes is rampant but reversible.

That is the message from celebrity doctor and medical journalist Dr Michael Mosley, who is tackling Australia’s fastest-growing chronic disease in his latest SBS series.

More than a million people have type 2 diabetes in Australia, according to government statistics, and many more are pre-diabetic, with blood sugar levels that are higher than they should be.

Mosley, author of The Fast Diet, says this is a timely topic during the pandemic as many people have changed their lifestyles amid lockdowns.

“People are eating more junk food since Covid and we can tell because the manufacturers that produce junk food, their profits have surged, and Uber Eats’ shareholders are very happy,” he says.

“Anxiety also encourages people to eat more.”

Dr. Michael Mosley says people eat more when they are anxious so the pandemic is not helping waistlines. Picture: Supplied

In Australia’s Health Revolution with Dr Michael Mosley, which premieres on October 13, Mosley and Gomeroi man and exercise physiologist Ray Kelly meet with eight Australians diagnosed with type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes and guide them through drastic diet and lifestyle adjustments to get their health back on track.

Mosley puts his own health on the line by demonstrating how quickly he can become pre-diabetic by eating and drinking fast food, soft drinks and “ultraprocessed” food.

“Ultraprocessed is a new classification and includes breakfast cereals, bagels and things you wouldn’t think of as particularly bad,” he says.

“They generally arrive in plastic packaging and have a list of ingredients you have never heard of. (After two weeks) the diet had a very dramatic impact on my waistline, blood sugars and blood pressure.

“I felt dreadful, I started to sleep badly and was snoring loudly.”

Mosley then demonstrates how he is able to reverse his diagnosis. It takes him about another two weeks to get his health back to normal.

“The longer you’ve had problems, the harder it is to reverse – pre-diabetes is much easier to knock on the head than if you had diabetes for 20 years – but it is possible,” he says.

Put down the bagel – ultraprocessed foods are ones to avoid. Picture: iStock

For anyone worried they are at risk of type 2 diabetes, Mosely recommends:

DO SOME RESEARCH

There are great resources on the Diabetes Australia website: diabetesaustralia.com.au

Mosley suggests using the online calculator to determine if you are in a significant risk category.

“If you are middle-aged or have a large waist – more than 86cm for women or 94cm for men – or if your BMI (body mass index) is over 30, suggesting obesity, or if you have close family relatives who have it (you are at a greater risk),” he says.

“If you are non-caucasian – for example, Indigenous Australian, African, Asian – you are at much greater risk of developing it at a younger age and lower BMI.”

BMI is calculated by dividing your weight (in kilograms) by your height (in metres) squared.

GET TESTED

“You can get a finger prick test at any chemist and if you are concerned, talk to your GP about it,” Mosley says. “You could buy a home kit for checking blood pressure as (high blood pressure) is linked to diabetes.”

GRAB A PIECE OF STRING

Mosely says a quick, easy way to check if you are overweight – and therefore prone to type 2 diabetes – is to do a “string test”.

“Measure your height (with the string), then fold in half and see if it fits around your tummy,” he says.

“If not, you are too big.”

Australia’s Health Revolution with Dr Michael Mosley premieres Wednesday, October 13 at 7.30pm on SBS.

People with a large waist are in a high-risk category. Picture: iStock

MODIFY YOUR RECIPES

Source: Diabetes Australia

● Instead of cooking with butter, use small amounts of polyunsaturated or mono-unsaturated fats such as olive, canola and sunflower oils

● Use low fat cooking methods such as steaming, stir-frying, grilling or microwaving

● Instead of cream, try low-fat yoghurt or evaporated skim milk that is chilled and whipped

● Choose lean meat and skinless chicken and trim all visible fat before cooking

● Try to eat fish at least 2-3 times each week

● Choose multigrain breads

● Instead of rice, use egg or wheat noodles, or couscous

● In mince dishes, substitute half the mince with cooked lentils, kidney beans or soy beans

● Instead of using salt to flavour foods try using herbs and spices, or adding lemon juice, onions, ginger, shallots, vinegar or wine