Breaking Free from Diabetes: One Doctor’s Proven Method to Lower Blood Sugar Naturally

Mar 16, 2025 - 10:55 Updated: Mar 15, 2025 - 19:42

Breaking Free from Diabetes: One Doctor’s Proven Method to Lower Blood Sugar Naturally

A ketogenic diet, fasting, exercise, and confidence go a long way in reclaiming your health.

Does having symptoms of diabetes mean you have to take medication for life? The answer is no—diabetes can be reversed, especially if you change your lifestyle early.

Dr. Liu Zhixin, author of “A New Method to Rapidly Lower Blood Sugar and Lose Weight” and dean of North America Bible Institute in Silicon Valley, California, shared his own experience of having soaring blood sugar to successfully containing it on NTDTV’s “Health 1+1” program. The onset of his symptoms began after regular overindulgence of eating sweets during the pandemic. His glycated hemoglobin (A1C) soared to 8.2 percent at the end of 2022, reaching the diabetic range. In the mornings, his fasting blood sugar was nearly 170 mg/dL.

Liu decided not to take antihyperglycemic drugs at the time and turned to diet and exercise to lower his blood sugar. A few months later, his fasting blood sugar dropped to 90 mg/dL, and his glycated hemoglobin dropped to 6.2 percent. His weight also dropped from nearly 135 pounds to 114. After supplementing protein as directed by his doctor, his weight equalized at around 120 pounds. His waist size also decreased from 34 inches to 30.5 and later stayed at about 31.5.

He summarized his success in reversing diabetes into four actions—ketogenic, fasting, exercise, and confidence. For Liu, “ketogenic” meant eating only 30 to 50 grams of carbohydrates every day; “fasting” meant doing the “15–9” fasting method, limiting the time from breakfast to dinner to 9 hours each day, and not eating for the other 15 hours; “exercise” included aerobic exercise, as well as doing resistance exercises such as squats and tiptoe raising at home to burn blood sugar; and last but not least, “confidence” meant to pray to God and ask for help to persevere.

Ketogenic Diet to Control Blood Sugar

In terms of the ketogenic diet, Liu said that he did not strictly avoid eating carbohydrates but controlled his carbohydrate intake to 30 grams to 50 grams a day. He would eat whole wheat bread in the morning, a small amount of brown rice for dinner, and sometimes beans and fruits. As for the protein-to-fat ratio, he believes that it is difficult to calculate, and we only need to follow our usual eating habits and reduce carbohydrates.

Research shows that for obese patients with Type 2 diabetes, a ketogenic diet with carbohydrates accounting for 20 percent of calories can control weight and blood sugar. After switching to a ketogenic diet, the dosage of diabetes medications or insulin can be reduced. Two of Liu’s patients lost 44 pounds each after changing their diets. Their blood sugar returned to normal after two and three years, respectively, and they no longer needed diabetes medication.

Saturated Fat Is Not Necessarily a Villain

A ketogenic diet reduces carbohydrate intake and relies on fat as the main source of energy. Liu said we should try to eat good fats and oils, such as avocado, salmon, and olive oil, and reduce the proportion of refined vegetable oils.

Many people are worried that the ketogenic diet will increase their saturated fat intake. Liu said that there are good and bad saturated fats. Butter, coconut oil, and cheese are all good natural fats.

A 2020 study published in the “Journal of the American College of Cardiology” stated that foods rich in saturated fat, such as full-fat dairy products, dark chocolate, and unprocessed meats, have not been shown to be associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease or diabetes. On the contrary, full-fat dairy products may even help to prevent Type 2 diabetes.

On the other hand, eating more unsaturated fats is not always a better choice. For example, vegetable oils with a high proportion of Omega-6 unsaturated fatty acids should not be overeaten. Studies have found that excessive intake of Omega-6 and insufficient intake of Omega-3 can cause chronic inflammation in the body and increase the probability of atherosclerosis, obesity, and diabetes.

As for cholesterol control, Liu believes you don’t need to worry too much about the cholesterol in your diet. Eighty percent of cholesterol is produced by your body and is related to genetic and other factors, while only 20 percent comes from diet. Therefore, it is difficult to lower cholesterol by controlling diet alone. Liu takes Liptor, the statin cholesterol-lowering drug, as prescribed by his physician.

15–9 Intermittent Fasting Is Sufficient

There are many popular fasting methods, including 5–2 fasting—eating normally for five days a week and no or less food for two days. The 16–8 fasting method is not eating for 16 hours and eating during the next 8 hours. Research has found that fasting can improve glucose regulation, inhibit inflammation, etc., and has been proven to exhibit preventive effects on a variety of chronic diseases in animal experiments.

In terms of fasting, Liu adopted a relatively mild 15–9 intermittent fasting, which means not eating for 15 hours and eating in the next 9 hours. “I have breakfast at 9 a.m., lunch at noon, and dinner at 6 p.m. I try not to eat snacks between meals, which is easier. The 15–9 routine can do a good job in keeping your blood sugar at a very good level.” Liu also said that if the fasting time is too long, it may lead to one feeling overly hungry during mealtime, resulting in overeating, which is not ideal for blood sugar control.

A study published in the journal “Cell Metabolism” found that fasting for only 14 hours a day can effectively cause weight loss and reduce glycated hemoglobin, which is also helpful in lowering blood pressure and preventing atherosclerosis.

Liu shared his typical daily meal plan:

Breakfast: A piece of whole wheat or whole grain bread with cream cheese, half an avocado, and smoked salmon on top; a cup of soy milk or almond milk; and a braised egg.

Lunch: A salad of romaine lettuce, grilled chicken breast, cheese, a small amount of salad dressing, and nuts. He said that salad dressing generally contains sugar and should not be eaten in excess.

Dinner: Grilled salmon and stir-fried vegetables or pan-fried chicken with tofu. Cut the chicken into small pieces and pan-fry it with the tofu and a quarter cup of brown rice.

He often goes to restaurants to eat, too. “You can eat as much delicious food as possible, but just reduce the carbohydrates to the minimum.” He emphasized that “eating until you are 80 percent full” and not taking in too many calories will naturally achieve your goal.

Resistance Exercise vs Aerobic Exercise

In addition to focusing on diet, exercise is also an effective way to control blood sugar. Liu said that his most common exercises at home are squatting and raising hands on tiptoes or squatting and raising hands with dumbbells to enhance muscle strength. In particular, squats target the thighs with the most muscles and are most helpful in controlling blood sugar. You can count from one to 10 and repeat five times. Some studies have found that resistance exercise is more effective than aerobic exercise in controlling blood sugar.

The American Diabetes Association recommends that patients with Type 2 diabetes exercise at least once every other day, preferably with aerobic and resistance exercises. They should also avoid sitting for extended periods and should get up and move around for a short while every 30 minutes.