Derby man loses 40kg since starting NHS programme

November is National Diabetes Month in the East Midlands, and this week the focus is on remission.

Not everyone is aware that Type 2 diabetes can be put into remission by making simple lifestyle changes.  Patients that are eligible will be offered a low calorie ‘soups and shakes’ diet. This 12-month innovative programme helps kickstart weight loss by providing participants with low calorie, nutritionally complete, total diet replacement products – such as soups, shakes and bars – consisting of 800 to 900 calories a day, for the first 12 weeks.

Between September 2020 and September 2024, 4,045 participants have started the Soups and Shakes programme in the East and West Midlands. It was rolled out in phases across all local health systems following pilot trials from 2020 onwards. Participants who started the programme in Q2 2023/24 and had enough time to reach the end of the programme had a mean weight change of -10.1%.

The programme sees participants supported by clinicians and coaches to reintroduce healthy, nutritious food into their diet to maintain weight loss as their progress monitored. This support can be through one-to-one in-person sessions or digitally online.

One person who benefited from joining the NHS Type 2 Diabetes Path to Remission Programme is Chris from Derby.

Chris said: “The programme has been brilliant for me. It’s not just about replacing food with soups and shakes for 12-weeks; it’s also a lifestyle intervention that helps you develop a new mindset. The support from the group meetings, both from my diabetes practitioner, Hannah, and the rest of the group, really helped with this.

“Total diet replacement [‘Soups and Shakes’] completely transformed me, and it was easy. My wife really supported me, and she ate her dinner when I wasn’t there. I had 3 shakes a day and a soup for my dinner. Along with this I drank plenty of black coffee with ‘skinny’ syrups.

“By March 2023 my HbA1c was down to 29mmol/mol, which my nurse said was better than her glucose levels! I’m no longer on any medication and my blood pressure is back to normal. I’ve lost over 40kg (6 stone), sleeping better, snoring less, and my wife says I no longer get breathless when walking up steps. I’m now going to the gym twice a week.”

Midlands Co-Clinical Director for Diabetes and Obesity, Dr Azhar Farooqi, said: “Those who think they may have type 2 diabetes should contact their GP. A few simple tests will determine if you’re right for the ‘Soups and Shakes’ programme. Alternatively, there may be other programmes more suitable.

“Our NHS Type 2 Diabetes Path to Remission Programme (Soups and Shakes), sits alongside the success of our world-leading Healthier You NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme – which independent evaluation has shown to successfully reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by more than a third for people who complete the programme.”

ENDS

NOTES

Over 20,000 people have already been offered the programme since it was first piloted by NHS England in 2020 as part of its Long Term Plan.

National analysis shows that the programme is effective and can work successfully to improve people’s diabetes control and support weight loss, with participants typically losing 7.2kg (over one stone) on average after one month, and an average of 13kg (over two stone) in three months.

This is similar to the outcomes seen in clinical trials, showing early promise that the programme will lead to remission of type 2 diabetes in up to half of those who complete it.

Health chiefs are investing £13 million this year to support the programme’s expansion, and since the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, local NHS teams have been given £36 million by NHS England to help restore their diabetes services to pre-pandemic levels.

Type 2 diabetes is a leading cause of preventable sight loss in people of working age and is a major contributor to kidney failure, lower limb amputation, heart attack, stroke and some cancers.

The NHS in England currently spends around £10 billion a year – around 10% of its entire budget – on identifying and treating diabetes. It also typically spends £6.5 billion a year on treating obesity.

Patients can benefit from the programme if they have been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in the last six years, with referrals made by local GPs. The programme is offered to people who meet a set of criteria, which include those who:

Are aged 18 – 65 years,
Have a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes within the last six years, and
Have a BMI over 27 kg/m2 (where individuals are from White ethnic groups) or over 25 kg/m2 (where individuals are from Black, Asian and other ethnic groups)

The NHS Long Term Plan set out a range of actions that the NHS is taking to reduce variation in access to services and patient outcomes, improve quality of treatment and outcomes for people living with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

The NHS Type 2 Diabetes Path to Remission Programme is a joint initiative between NHS England and Diabetes UK. It is based on two large studies which showed that, as a result of going on a specially designed programme, people living with type 2 diabetes who were overweight could improve their diabetes control, reduce diabetes-related medication and, in some cases, put their type 2 diabetes into remission.

Adults living with obesity who have a diagnosis of diabetes or hypertension or both can also get help with managing their weight and improve their health via alternative NHS programmes.

The NHS Digital Weight Management Programme is a nationally available 12-week online behavioural and lifestyle programme accessed via a smartphone or computer with internet access. It can be accessed following a referral from Primary Care or Community Pharmacy.