HOW LOW-CARB HAS CHANGED ALL OUR LIVES

I’m free of medication and fitter than ever

LAURA SCRUTON, 59, is a civil servant. she lives in Berwick-upon-tweed, northumberland, with her husband, and has a daughter, Bethany, 26. Laura says:

PEOPLE say a low- carb diet isn’t sustainable, but ten years on, I’m proof it is.

When I think of the food I used to put in my body, I feel angry because it was making me overweight and ill — even though I considered it to be healthy.

I’d been vegetarian since the 1970s and a typical day would be start with porridge and banana; wholemeal bread sandwich for lunch, and tofu or beans with brown rice for dinner. I didn’t eat biscuits or sweets and barely drank alcohol.

Yet by my mid- 40s I weighed 12st, far too much for my 5ft 2in frame.

I’d developed gestational diabetes while pregnant and eight months after Bethany’s birth I was diagnosed with type 2; I was 33. I tried medication such as metformin and gliclazide to control it, but to no avail.

I also took tablets for arthritis in my hands, plus statins (for a family history of heart disease).

My ill-health and sideeffects from the pills took their toll. on Bethany’s 19th birthday, we went for a day at the races but I spent most of it in the car as I was so exhausted; due to my size or my medication, I’m not sure — but something had to change.

I’d tried dieting but would get hungry and irritable. Also, the weight would creep on again when I started eating normally.

In 2008, a friend at work mentioned low-carb. I tried it half-heartedly but in 2013, decided to do it properly. It was a revelation.

The weight fell off quickly and I didn’t struggle with hunger as I was filling up with protein — I started eating meat again. Having been a size 16, I was a size 10 within months.

Now, I don’t eat breakfast because I’m usually not hungry. For lunch, I’ll have tuna mayo and raspberries with mascarpone and dark chocolate for dessert, for example. Dinner might be shepherd’s pie.

I’ve been a healthy 9st 4lb for more than seven years and I’ve so much more energy to the point it’s quite annoying! I regularly do 12-mile bike rides and have taken up online Zumba classes and resistance-band work. What’s more, I’ve not been on my old medication since 2015.

I thought I was heading for a life of being unwell and would be approaching my 60s hardly able to move. But I’m feeling stronger, fitter, healthier and happier than ever.

I’ve reversed type 2 and have bags of energy

JACQUI CONWAY ROSS, 50, an NHS occupational therapist, lives in southport, Merseyside, with husband Mike, 55, who has two children. she says:

WHEN I started on low-carb I didn’t just shed pounds, my mood improved dramatically. For 20 years I had depression on and off but as I changed my eating habits it was like a cloud slowly lifting. Back in 2018 I was so low that I had to go on sick leave and struggled daily. I was so tired that I cried if I had to move and couldn’t think straight. My psychiatrist thought I had treatment-resistant depression and suggested lithium, a much stronger drug than the antidepressant I’d been on for ten years. But I felt I wasn’t just depressed, so in November 2018 I went to my GP, Dr David Unwin. Blood tests showed I had type 2 diabetes, which surprised me as I was less than half a stone overweight. Dr Unwin suggested a low-carb approach, which was very different from how I’d been eating, not least as I had a terrible weakness for biscuits. Within two weeks of going low carb my body and my mind felt very calm. I’m still on antidepressants but they manage my symptoms better. At work, I can concentrate again and have bags of energy. I ride my two horses and walk about 20,000 steps daily. I’ve gone from 11st 4lb with a BMI of 26.3, ‘overweight’, to 9st 12lb and a BMI of 22.9. ‘healthy’. I’ve also reversed my type 2, improved my mental health and got my life back on track.

I lost so much weight people didn’t even recognise me

LISA DWYER, 55, a teacher, lives on Merseyside with husband sam, 49, and 18-year-old son. she says:

I AM a sugar addict — once I eat it, I can’t stop and I pay the price in poor health and piling on the pounds.

In late 2019, I was horrified to find I was 19st — my heaviest ever. I was a size 22 and had weight-related problems like joint pain, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), migraine, acne and type 2 diabetes.

I’ve struggled with my weight since my 30s. I became pregnant with twins, but at 24 weeks, went into premature labour and my babies died in intensive care. They were just three days old. I ate and drank loads, trying to numb the grief.

Nine months later, I was pregnant again and my son arrived safely — but I struggled to lose the weight afterwards.

In March 2019 I was diagnosed with type 2. By December I’d reached my heaviest, so quit eating sweets, chocolate and desserts and stuck to three meals a day and no snacks. Then I began to cut down on bread, pasta and potatoes. I felt good but looked the same.

In lockdown last March I contacted Dr Unwin for support. He asked me to join a Zoom low-carb group he runs with his wife Jen who is a psychologist, another GP, plus patients on a low-carb diet.

I started a low-carb diet with intermittent fasting — where you eat only within set times. Soon, I’d lost so much weight some colleagues didn’t even recognise me. Within eight months I’d reversed my diabetes and by November 2020, I’d lost nearly 6st — I’m 5ft 10in tall and my BMI has gone from 38, ‘obese’, to 25.3, just outside the ‘healthy’ range.

My IBS and joint problems have vanished, I sleep better, and have more energy. And, as obesity and diabetes are believed to put you at higher risk of dying from Covid, my low-carb regime may just have saved my life.

My wife’s so happy that I don’t snore any more

Mike Worthy, 54, managing director of a textile import agency, lives in Southport, Merseyside, with wife Sally, 46, and their daughters, aged 14 and 12. Mike says: FOR years, I kept my head in the sand about my size. I knew deep down I needed to lose weight — 18 months ago, I weighed 20st 7lb; I’m 5ft 10in. So my BMI was 41, ‘obese’ — but I still kidded myself I was OK. I ate out a lot on business trips and enjoyed cooking big meals, but didn’t consider myself unhealthy. I swam three times a week, didn’t smoke and drank just eight units of alcohol a week. I called myself ‘portly’ rather than overweight and believed I ate well — lots of fruit and vegetables, Mediterranean-style meals with wholegrains, and all meals cooked from scratch. But I was also having a lot of carbs and loved chocolate, puddings, and crisps. When I went to see my GP Dr David Unwin in September 2019 for a regular bloodpressure check he said it was getting higher, despite my medication. I was also within the pre-diabetic range. He suggested I try to go low carb and lose weight because if I didn’t, I was heading for more medical problems. It wasn’t easy to hear. But I swapped my usual breakfast — a couple of slices of toast with butter and marmalade or porridge, for berries, full-fat Greek yoghurt and coffee. At lunch, instead of a sandwich I’d make an omelette or miso soup plus an apple and cheese. For dinner, it was homemade curry packed with veg, or chicken stir-fry. I made fruit salad or dark chocolate mousse to follow. I also exercised a lot, walking and taking up golf. The weight fell off fairly quickly and I was able to ditch my hypertension medication as my blood pressure fell to a healthy level. Eighteen months on, I’ve lost 4st — I’m now 16st 7lb. My waist has gone from 40in to 36in, so I fit into trousers I haven’t been able to wear for years. My blood sugar is in the normal range again so I’m not pre-diabetic. My family are delighted at the slimmer me and my wife is happy as I don’t snore any more. I’m glad Dr Unwin had the guts to tell me I needed to lose weight — doctors sometimes skirt around it.