The DiRECT Trial
The DiRECT clinical trial brought the topic of type 2 diabetes remission into the spotlight. Participants in the trial were people living in the UK who had type 2 diabetes diagnosed within the last 6 years and a BMI ranging between 27–45 kg/m2.
The participants followed a very low-calorie formula diet of 850 calories a day for 3 to 5 months followed by a slow reintroduction of foods over a 6 to 8-week period.
Findings after 1 year were published in 2017 showing that almost half of the participants achieved remission after twelve months. The most recent results published in 2019 showed that 70% of those participants are still in remission after 2 years.
The results from this study have been so encouraging that NHS England has started to offer low-calorie programmes, and NHS Scotland already has programmes that are being rolled out.
What happens after remission?
Remission isn’t a complete cure to type 2 diabetes as it can still come back so it is important that you maintain the changes you have made to your diet and lifestyle and still attend all of your diabetes appointments.
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