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If you’ve been wondering whether it’s possible to reverse prediabetes, how long it might take, and the steps you need to take to make it happen, you’re in the right place.
In this episode, we’ll answer some of the most common questions about reversing prediabetes and share an inspiring success story from Lisa, who reversed her prediabetes within six months through our Prediabetes Reset Program.
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CHAPTERS
1:31 ‘Reverse’ prediabetes defined
2:17 Is prediabetes reversible?
3:23 Can prediabetes be reversed permanently
5:20 How quickly can you reverse prediabetes
6:27 What’s the best way to reverse prediabetes
10:13 Lisa’s journey to reverse prediabetes
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What Does It Mean to Reverse Prediabetes?
Reversing prediabetes means bringing your blood sugar levels back into the normal range and significantly reducing or even eliminating the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Prediabetes is a warning sign that your metabolism has become unbalanced and needs support. By taking proactive steps, you can reset your metabolism, regain control, and achieve healthier blood sugar levels—or cholesterol, blood pressure and weight—which are common issues with prediabetes, too.
Is Prediabetes Reversible?
Absolutely!
Research and real-world experience show that prediabetes is highly reversible. The key lies in addressing the root causes—elevated blood sugar, insulin resistance, and poor metabolic health.
With the right lifestyle changes, like improved nutrition, regular physical activity, and weight management if needed, many people with prediabetes see their blood sugar levels return to normal. And the earlier you take action, the easier it is to reverse.
Can Prediabetes Be Reversed Permanently?
Yes, but maintenance is crucial.
Reversing prediabetes isn’t about a one-time fix—it’s about adopting and sustaining healthier habits over the long term.
Think of it like brushing your teeth: if you stop, problems can return. Similarly, reverting to the habits that contributed to prediabetes can cause blood sugar levels to rise again—like eating too much sugar or excessive amounts of high carb foods or junk food snacks.
The good news? The habits that help you reverse prediabetes—like eating a balanced nutrition plan, staying active, and managing stress—also lead to overall better health and well-being.
How Quickly Can You Reverse Prediabetes?
For most people, returning to normal blood sugar can be achieved within 3 to 6 months with consistent proactive efforts.
Some people see changes even faster, especially if they focus on dietary improvements like reducing sugar and carbohydrate intake.
For those on medications like Metformin, many find they no longer need them within a year of implementing sustained changes.
However, remember that it’s not a race. The goal is to create sustainable habits that allow you to maintain normal blood sugar levels for the long term.
What Is the Best Way to Reverse Prediabetes?
The best way to reverse prediabetes is by addressing its underlying drivers: high blood sugar and insulin resistance.
Here’s how we do that:
1. Nutrition Is Key
- Reduce sugar and carbs: Focus on lowering the carbohydrate load in your diet. Avoid sugary foods, refined carbs (like white bread and pastries), and starchy foods (like potatoes, rice, and pasta). These are the biggest contributors to high blood sugar.
- Prioritize whole foods: Build your meals around non-starchy vegetables, healthy fats (like olive oil, nuts, and seeds), and quality proteins (like fish, chicken, and eggs). These foods help stabilize blood sugar and improve insulin sensitivity.
PRO TIP: Carbohydrates are the macronutrient that impacts blood sugar the most.
When we reduce carbohydrate intake, choosing the right types of carbs, blood sugar will naturally become lower. Losing weight, lowering cholesterol and blood pressure also become easier!
Nutrition is your top priority!
2. Get Moving
- Exercise is a powerful tool for improving insulin sensitivity.
- Start small—just 5 to 10 minutes of daily activity can make a difference. Walking after meals, resistance training, yoga, or even everyday activities like gardening or housework count as movement.
3. Sleep, Stress, and Well-Being
- Lack of sleep and chronic stress can raise blood sugar and worsen insulin resistance. Aim for quality rest and incorporate stress-reducing activities like mindfulness, meditation, or deep breathing.
Lisa’s Inspiring Story
Lisa’s story is a powerful example of what’s possible with commitment and the right guidance.
Diagnosed with prediabetes, she joined us as a VIP Member and took our Prediabetes Reset Program. Within six months, Lisa achieved normal blood sugar and A1c levels, going from 6.0 to 5.5.
One of Lisa’s key motivators was she didn’t want to take more medications, as she had breast cancer in the past.
Lisa’s transformation showcases how small, consistent steps can lead to big results, in just a short amount of time. And achieving normal levels is a common result of our members with prediabetes, as they are following the right guidance and have all the tools and resources they need at their fingertips.
The Bottom Line
Prediabetes is reversible, and for most people, it doesn’t take long to start seeing positive changes.
The key is taking action—improving your nutrition, moving more and addressing other lifestyle factors.
With consistency and commitment, you can regain control of your health and prevent type 2 diabetes.
Ready to take the first step toward reversing your prediabetes? JOIN US AS A VIP MEMBER.
Transcript
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Dr Jedha, Host
Hello wonderful people and thanks for joining me today for an episode dedicated to our listeners with prediabetes, focusing on the topic of reversing prediabetes.
We’ve got a series of questions to answer on the topic of reversing prediabetes, and after that, we’ll be hearing from Lisa who joined us as a VIP Member and took our Prediabetes Reset Program and six months on she has reversed her prediabetes.
01:31
Before we dive into today’s topic, let’s define and explore what ‘reverse’ prediabetes actually means.
When we say prediabetes is reversible, what we mean is that blood sugar levels can return to the normal range, and the associated risks for developing type 2 diabetes can be significantly reduced or even eliminated. Essentially, prediabetes is a warning sign that your metabolism has become altered and needs support to rebalance. Reversal of prediabetes means you’re proactively taking care of your health, in a way that resets your metabolism and facilitates your blood sugar to return to the normal range.
02:17
So considering this, one of the most common questions we get asked is, ‘Is prediabetes reversible?’ And the answer is a resounding YES.
Research and experience has consistently shown that through proactive lifestyle changes like improved nutrition, regular physical activity, and weight management (if needed), it’s entirely possible to achieve normal blood sugar levels. Many people with prediabetes do this without medications. In fact, it’s far easier to do this when diagnosed with prediabetes, because prediabetes is a warning sign. The process of losing blood sugar control happens on a spectrum, so the sooner we can take action after a diagnosis, the sooner we can rebalance our metabolism back to normal. Prediabetes gives you the opportunity to make changes to better your health.
03:23
A question that often follows is, ‘Can prediabetes be reversed permanently?’
Yes, prediabetes can be reversed permanently, and this happens by maintaining normal blood sugar levels for the long term. However, the key word here is maintenance. As we’ve established, prediabetes is a sign that your body is sensitive to certain factors—nutritional factors like a poor overall nutrition plan or excessive sugar and carbohydrates in your diet; it could also be due to lifestyle factors like lack of physical activity, alcohol consumption, excessive stress or lack of quality sleep. Once you reverse prediabetes, staying in the normal range depends on keeping up the healthy habits that got you there.
When we talk about reversing prediabetes permanently, it’s not about a one-time fix and then you go back to old habits. Think of it like brushing your teeth—if you stop doing it, problems will eventually arise and you may develop dental cavities. The same goes for prediabetes, if you switch back to the habits that led to your prediabetes diagnosis, then prediabetes may return. The key is that you use your diagnosis as a motivator to change and maintain healthier habits to prevent slipping back.
The great news is that the habits that reverse prediabetes also support overall health and well-being. By continuing to make good choices, you’re not just reversing prediabetes, you’re building a foundation for a healthier, happier life.
So yes, prediabetes can be reversed permanently, but it’s up to you to keep it that way.
05:20
Another question that often comes up is, ‘How quickly can you reverse prediabetes?’
The good news is, for most people, it doesn’t take as long as you might think to see improvements. But let’s break this down so you know what to expect.
Like any health change, how quickly you personally see progress can depend on your starting point—like your current blood sugar levels, your level of insulin resistance, whether weight is significantly impacting your levels, how consistent you are with implementing changes, and whether you have other health conditions that might impact progress.
But, most people with prediabetes see a return to normal blood sugar and A1c levels within 3-6 months, and if taking Metformin, most people get off all medication within one year. We see this all the time with our members.
If that doesn’t happen for you, remember, it’s not about how fast you can do it—it’s about creating sustainable changes that will help you maintain those results for the long term.
06:27
When it comes to reversing prediabetes, the question that often follows is, ‘What’s the best way to do it?’
The best way to reverse prediabetes is by focusing on what drives it—high blood sugar and high insulin levels, which promotes insulin resistance. You have to focus on lowering blood sugar levels and lowering insulin levels, which in turn will improve the insulin resistance. Nutrition is going to be the primary focus here. Nutrition is the number one natural treatment to achieve these goals – to lower blood sugar, to lower insulin and to improve insulin sensitivity.
The place to start is by reducing your sugar intake and the carbohydrate load of your diet, carbohydrates being the main contributing nutrient to elevated blood sugar levels. Avoid or minimize sugary foods, refined carbs, and starchy foods like bread, pasta, and rice – as these are all very carbohydrate-rich foods that spike blood sugar and insulin and worsen insulin resistance. Instead, start prioritizing whole, unprocessed foods like vegetables (there are lots to choose from and that doesn’t include potatoes), healthy fats (like olive oil, nuts, and seeds), and proteins (like fish, chicken, or eggs).
Research has consistently shown that dietary changes can lower blood sugar levels and improve insulin sensitivity, often within weeks. In fact, diet alone can be enough to reverse prediabetes for many people. But that doesn’t mean stopping there…
Secondary to diet and nutrition is to move more. Exercise is another key component. If you’re not doing any exercise now, then start with 5-10 minutes a day. If you’re doing a little, add an extra 5-10 minutes. Our body was designed to move so move more. That doesn’t mean you have to spend hours in the gym—simple activities like walking, resistance training, or even yoga can improve insulin sensitivity and help lower blood sugar. Or it could even be cleaning the house, gardening, or outdoor activities that add to your daily movement.
Then assessing your levels of sleep, stress and aspects of your well-being which we covered in episode 51 – physical, emotional, mental, social and environmental impacts can influence our health as well.
The key points here are that prediabetes can be reversed and reversed permanently, for most people it doesn’t take that long to initially achieve normal blood sugar levels and the primary way this is done is through nutrition.
10:13
Lisa & Dr Jedha’s audio, not transcribed.
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