Cutting the carbs proves a winning strategy for tackling diabetes
Published 26 May 2021 on www.nzdoctor.co.nz
Jeremy van de Klundert, general manager sales & marketing, Medtech Global, Charlotte Perry, Glen Davies and Belinda Rowles
MEDTECH GENERAL PRACTITIONER OF THE YEAR
This award recognises an exceptional GP working in general practice who has made an outstanding contribution to their practice and patient health. They will have demonstrated professional leadership, commitment to equity, imagination and innovation, to achieve better outcomes and foster the growth and development of other doctors working in general practice
WINNER: GLEN DAVIES
When a patient named Wayne called Glen Davies a “useless bastard”, it started a journey that would see the Taupō GP rethink his approach to treating type 2 diabetes.
“He dropped six books on my desk and told me to learn some medicine. So I read the books which were all on low-carb and ketogenic diets, and since then I’ve been fanatically reading every study I can,” Dr Davies says.
Working with other Taupō-based researchers and practitioners, he established the Reverse Type 2 Diabetes Taupō (RT2DT) group, which promotes a lifestyle that includes nutrient-rich whole unprocessed foods and natural fats, and avoids processed carbohydrates, industrial seed oils and high-sugar foods.
Not only has it helped 103 of Dr Davies’ patients at Taupō Medical Centre to reverse their type 2 diabetes and prediabetes, the group is inspiring a whole community to take better care of their health.
“Most of the group have used this approach to reverse their diabetes, and many are using it to treat more complicated conditions like cancer or Alzheimer’s,” Dr Davies says.
The RT2DT team runs weekly Wednesday evening meetings featuring Q&A sessions and testimonials from participants who have had success with low-carbohydrate diets. Resources and recipe books are also provided free of charge, and a Facebook group with over 2800 members provides further support outside of meetings.
As a result of these efforts, 42 patients at the Taupō Medical Centre have been able to reverse their type 2 diabetes through lifestyle changes, he says, with 75 per cent remaining reversed at a two-year follow-up. An additional 61 patients have reversed their prediabetes, with 81 per cent remaining reversed at a two-year follow-up. Dr Davies says his driving force is “both the joy of consultation and the joy of seeing my community beginning to thrive”.
“I love hearing about their successes. Especially with the unexpected things, like people’s joint pain going away, their sleep improving and their mood improving.”
Dr Davies works closely with the other 2021 General practitioner of the year finalist and low-carb advocate, Lily Fraser.
“I hope the fact that both Lily and I are just two of a handful of GPs doing this, yet we’re making such a massive impact, causes the rest of primary healthcare to take some notice and start looking at the science around carbohydrate restrictions,” Dr Davies says.
Judges' comments:
A great impact and outcome for the local community. Easily replicated group, and clearly Dr Davies has a passion for eradicating a major disease through good communication and using varied tools to reach patients.
Advocacy for a low-carb diet goes hand in hand with te reo Māori
FINALIST: LILY FRASER
Lily Fraser has seen the detrimental effects of chronic illness firsthand, as well as the positive difference that a lifestyle change can make.
The GP and clinical director at Turuki Health Care in Māngere, Auckland, is a passionate advocate for low-carb eating, and has helped many patients reverse their diabetes and maintain a healthy weight this way. “What I love about it is that it allows you to change your framework on how you talk about chronic disease, and you can start talking about disease going away [and stopping medication],” Dr Fraser says.
The first Māori GP to come from a kura kaupapa Māori immersion school, Dr Fraser is passionate about supporting whānau and incorporating te reo into her practice.
“I’m really aware of the impact of lost language for Māori, and so I reflect the Māori language use of my patients,” she says. “I’ve had patients come to Turuki specifically so they could have a Māori-speaking doctor.”
She is a teacher for the RNZCGP as well as an executive member of Te Ohu Rata O Aotearoa, the Māori Medical Practitioners Association (Te ORA).
Judges' comments:
Lily has great mana and has truly dedicated herself to driving better health outcomes…by listening to patients, and acting on that, thinking outside the square and bringing in different ways of reaching people
Interested in entering the awards and becoming a Primary Star in 2022?
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