Newsletters

War on diabetes newsletter 7th September 2025

Welcome to the thirteenth War on Diabetes newsletter, your weekly tips and ideas from someone who has had diabetes for five years and learned a lot about it. It's a practical and actionable guide to details your doctor probably won't have time to tell you about.

This week I've been out exploring Rivington Terraced Gardens and the rather dried up Japanese style lake.

I've had problems with high glucose in the mornings this week but just about managing to get things back under control. I think the key takeaway for this week is that you can't trust sausages from butchers because you have no idea how much sugar is in them. With supermarkets you can check how much sugar is added to sausages from the nutrition label. I generally look for a sugar content of 1g per 100g or less.

Million step challenge

I'm almost at 900,000 steps and am well ahead of schedule for getting to the one million steps by the end of September deadline. I'm not finding it difficult to do the walking at all now. I get fidgety if I've not got a decent walk in, and struggle to sit down for long periods of time.

I love finding isolated woodlands. This was a new path I explored near Darcy Lever Gravel Pits.

Foraging

With the weather giving clear signals that winter is on its way, I've been mindful of gathering more ingredients for my BDNF-boosting tea that I have almost daily. I find it really refreshing and really helps me get through fasting days. Freezing, rather than drying the leaves helps to preserve their vitamin C content. I've also figured out that these big blueberries are actually sloe berries 😅 so I've managed to gather a bowl full ready to try making some kombucha and sloe gin. I'm not sure what impact those will have on my glucose levels but it will be interesting to find out. Piercing and freezing apparently helps to bring out the sweetness of sloe berries so they're all prepped and in the freezer ready for my experiments.

I find gathering nettles with gloves is much easier than snipping them one by one. Sloe berries are coming into season so I've got a decent stash.

Progress Update

It's been a week of trying to combat morning glucose highs and trying to stop my progress from slipping away. Maintaining my new habits long-term is going to be challenging.

What I learned this week

I've been looking at how best to maximise my weight training sessions by timing protein intake. I don't think I've got it quite right yet so going to try some new strategies next week.

New Recruit Tip

What no medical consultant has ever told me in the last five years, is that insulin resistance is the underlying metabolic cause of type 2 diabetes, rather than a difficulty in producing insulin. There is still a general dogma that 'natural' sugars are fine to consume in 'moderation' but I find this very misleading because sugar from any source contains the same molecules and is treated the same way by the body. From what I've read, fructose is the key metabolic driver of type 2 diabetes so it needs to be avoided as much as possible.

Diabetes Veterans

Eli Lilly have temporarily stopped supplying Mounjaro to the UK ahead of scheduled price increases in response to private buyers starting to stockpile supplies. What I find disturbing about this is that people who are taking this medication will potentially end up gaining more weight than when they started on the drug because coming off it can apparently cause vastly increased hunger. What's not in the news yet is that fructokinase inhibitors have the potential to block the metabolism of fructose in the liver which I think will be an even more successful drug-based approach to preventing and treating type 2 diabetes. I do think we are too quick to resort to drug-based solutions to what is primarily a diet-based health problem in the UK, but it will be helpful for people who still struggle with sugar and alcohol addiction even after being given good dietary advice (i.e. not the usual have Weetabix for breakfast nonsense). The most promising study I can find on these new drugs is from Eli Lilly so it will be worth watching how the Mounjaro debacle plays out.

See a study on KHK inhibitors

This week's food heroes

Chicken & butter bean soup

One of my better glucose mornings was after this creamy chicken soup for dinner the evening before. I added a small amount (40g) of sweet potato and didn't need any other carbs with it. Total net carbs was 18g for a very satisfying meal. I always try to make the most of left over roast chicken by boiling the carcass for a couple of hours to make a broth. It can be used for making soups or adding to other meaty dishes to add richness. The protein and saturated fat makes it very filling so there's no need for bread.

Other ingredients: broad beans, mushrooms, onion, cabbage, spinach and plenty of double cream.

Tuna, cottage cheese, egg and natto salad

I find a tuna salad is one of the best ways to get a good protein boost with a very low blood glucose impact. Natto needs an hour or so of pre-soaking to rehydrate and I also add chia seeds to the mix to make them easier to digest. Flaxseed and dried barberies pack in more nutrients.

Using cottage cheese instead of mayonnaise helps to avoid UPF and also boosts protein and nutrients.

Struggle meal beef & lentil bolognese

One of my self-imposed tasks for this week was to write up a recipe for a struggle meal that I can use as a quick and easy meal option for when I'm really struggling to find the motivation to cook, or am in a hurry. Most of the ingredients here are frozen so are easy to weigh and throw in a pan without lots of washing and chopping.

One disadvantage of frozen food is it can make meals a bit watery but it all tasted great. Net carbs 39g. Don't include the lentils if you want a lower-carb option.

Just add the following ingredients in order to a large saucepan, keep stirring, and cook for about 30-40 minutes. Amounts are per person for a large portion so adjust as needed.

5g butter
1 bay leaf
1 x 10g cube of frozen garlic
20g frozen sliced red onion
120g frozen beef mince
50g frozen mushrooms
10g frozen carrots
10g frozen peppers
20g frozen broad beans
1/2 tin of chopped tomatoes
1 tsp tomato puré
1 tsp concentrated bone broth or a stock cube (I use one from Jarmino)
1/2 tin of organic lentils
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp thyme
20g grated Parmigiano reggiano (any Italian hard cheese is fine)

I'm walking a million steps this summer to help Diabetes UK fund research and support for people living with diabetes in the UK. If you're able to make a donation, I'll be made up and have one more reason not to back out 😅

Did you know that Bolton has been making shoes for Olympic athletes for over 100 years? In 1961, Norman Walsh left J W Foster & Sons (the precursor of Reebok), to boldly establish his own brand. You can still buy performance footwear designed and made in Bolton from Walsh today.

Shop normanwalsh.com

Released in 1981 for harriers competing in the New York Marathon, the Ensign quickly became known for its durable performance and minimalist design. While many brands were experimenting with new technological materials, Norman Walsh stuck to his “less is more” approach. Featuring a Vibram Moreflex outsole with a thick wedge in the midsole for a cushioned heel strike, the Ensign provided both comfort and flexibility. The lightweight upper offered full-foot support, making it ideal for marathon training and races.