Diet, Management & Prevention

Imagine life without insulin shots or oral drugs to control your glucose. For the great majority of Type 2 diabetics who come to the Pritikin Longevity Center, that's exactly what happens. Doris Drew is one stunning example. Fifteen years ago, the software programmer from Wichita, Kansas, suffered from diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, and obesity. Her blood sugar was alarmingly high. "My mother died from complications related to diabetes. I saw myself going through the same agony she endured, and I was frightened."

So Doris came to the Pritikin Longevity Center. Today, she's off all diabetic medications, she's lost--and kept off--130 pounds, her blood pressure is normal, and her blood sugar readings indicate that "she's essentially a nondiabetic," her physician proudly announces. "She's in state-of-the-art control."

Her life is in state-of-the-art control, too. "I like to think of the Pritikin Program as my own personal hobby. I love the food, and I'm always on the go--walking, strength training, ballroom dancing. The healthier I've become, the more hopeful and rewarding my life is."

Thousands of diabetics have graduated from the Pritikin Longevity Center medication-free. Indeed, for many of our graduates, glucose is lowered to the point where they're no longer even defined as having diabetes. Long-term follow-up has shown that those alumni who continued to follow the Pritikin Program were able to stay off medications and still maintain healthy glucose levels. By eating well, exercising, and losing weight, they, like Doris, are living healthy, vigorous new lives.