24/10/2016 Inside Out North East and Cumbria

It's one of the biggest costs to the NHS.

We examine the impact of di`betes on the health service and its patients.

We meet one North East scientist who believes he may have the answer.

here we have a liver that is returned to perfect health -

And the X Factor star on the bittersweet road to success.

16 years old on a huge television show, and to copd

with my Type One diabetes on top of that was difficult.

I'm Chris Jackson, and this is Inside Out.

Around 4.5 million people in this country have diabetes,

Treating diabetes patients is costing ?10 billion a year -

We asked the BBC's health correspondent, Dominic Hughds,

to investigate the costs ? financial and human.

Today, I'd like to invite you to a shoe shop with a difference.

So what we've got here is 140 shoes, and they represent 140 amputations

that take place in England every week, due to complications

So people losing toes or lower limbs.

Oh, that's a lot of limbs being lost.

We set up this shoe shop to show just how serious

Where you come from and your family history can increase your rhsk,

but doctors say most of it is down to obesity.

Now new data, given exclusively to the BBC by Public Health England,

estimates there will be an extra 250,000 people with Type Two

diabetes by 2035 if we continue to get fatter.

Diabetics are at risk of kidney failure, blindness,

The NHS is spending ?10 billion a year and diabetic care -

that's nearly 10% of its entire budget.

As things stand, we are certainly looking at a crisis in diabdtes

which does threaten to bankrupt the NHS if we continue

One of our shoes belongs to Stephen Woodman.

We caught up with him as he arrived at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital for

Like 90% of diabetics, Stephen has the Type Two version

which is linked to lifestyle, and so largely preventable.

But diagnosed as a young man, he ignored his GP's advice.

I carried on leading the lifestyle that I was.

I was a lot younger, this was over 25 years ago.

I was out, going to the pub and all these things

Not too bad while I was in hospital last week.

Like many diabetics, Stephen developed

The ulcer would not heal and, in the end, he had

My surgeon did say to me, when he was taking my third to off,

it's only a matter of time before you lose that one.

He said, it is inevitable that that one will go the same way.

I've become an old man very, very quickly.

You know, I will go on forever, I thought.

Patients with Type Two diabetes aren't just losing their tods.

Some have had to have a foot amputated, or even a lower leg.

It's life changing, and very expensive.

It's approximately ?20,000 for the first six months

for a patient that requires amputation.

There's the limb fitting, and even a basic prosthesis costs

All of those aspects mean that it is a very expensive

Nick Hex is the Economist who worked out

Most of that is spent on complications.

Foot ulcers and amputations cost nearly ?1 billion a year.

Then there is sight loss and nerve damage, but the biggest cost

of all was for heart attacks and strokes.

With both obesity and Type Two diabetes affecting more

and more of us, costs for diabetic care are expected

There is a fixed amount of loney for the NHS, so clearly if one

disease like diabetes is taking up a more considerable amount of that

cost, then there is more less money to spend on other

So it is really important that the policymakers and local

commissions for care think about the way in which those

costs can be mitigated over the next few years,

because clearly there is not going to be enough money to go around

I'm just taking all the measurements we need to do

Back at the Royal Shrewsburx Hospital, Stephen is

Losing three toes mean she has to have specially made shoes.

Just out of interest, how much is a pair of boots

Because the boots will be custom-made to fit your feet,

they will cost approximately ?400 to ?500.

We need to try and find ways of preventing those patients

from reaching surgeons, because the cost to the patient

A new problem is expected to put even more

16-year-old Aisha is one of a small but growing number of children

I developed Type Two diabetds by having a sweet tooth.

I used to try out every new sweet, and I used to drink quite

When I was taken to hospital, the doctor told me I was di`gnosed

with Type Two diabetes, it hit me then because I started crying.

Aisha now has to rely on medicine to control her condition.

But she has managed to lose a stone in weight and those fizzy drinks

It's been hard at times, but you can only have health once,

You have to keep changing your diet plan to what ever it is,

New research shows the numbdr of children like Aisha with Type Two

diabetes has nearly doubled in the last ten years.

And they are likely to develop complications much more early.

People who are getting Type Two diabetes when they are 15 or 16

are going to have significant problems, or likely to have

significant problems, maybe at the age of 35, 36.

That's really much younger than you'd expect, because these

are things like renal failure and heart attacks, strokes.

Ultimately, tackling the rise in Type Two diabetes depends

I believe we are facing a crisis and, in calling this a crisis,

we really need concerted action right across society,

for us to fund more research, to provide the best possible

care and treatment and, crucially, to prevent Sunni cases

We need to stem the tide, otherwise we could see a crisis,

and there are issues of sustainability for the NHS

Stephen's diabetes has stabilised, but it is too late to save his job.

Unsteady on his feet after losing his toes,

he has been told by his employer he is no longer fit for work.

Given everything you have bden through, Steve,

what would your advice be to other people who are being diagnosed now

It's the biggest regret I have ever had in my entire life.

So is it true that if you're diagnosed with Type Two diabetes,

Well, not according to a leading scientist from Newcastle

who says the disease can be reversed without drugs.

So could his radical approach be the answer

He thinks his diabetes could kill him.

I'm concerned about having a stroke, having a heart attack,

kidney failure, and different types of things that can happen.

It's frightening when you think about it.

But, a few miles away, a world-renowned professor believes

he has found a solution that could help Ed and many like him

Type Two diabetes is revershble for most people,

Roy Taylor's claim has stunned the medical world.

Are we potentially on the cusp of a revolution here?

If he is right, Professor T`ylor will help hundreds of thousands

of diabetes patients free themselves of the condition and save the NHS

And it is all a question of what you eat.

Professor Taylor's team at Newcastle University askdd

volunteers with Type Two di`betes to go on a very low calorie diet,

designed to melt away that from key parts of the body.

Our hypothesis was that Typd Two diabetes was typified

If we got rid of that, things might return to normal.

We look at this organ, that's the liver.

The level of fat is, in fact, 3 %, which is extremely high.

But after eight weeks of thhs diet, just look at this, 2% liver fat.

It's the same person, but you might say they are reborn.

Fat levels also fell in the pancreas, the organ that

The most exciting thing is the function.

Type Two diabetes after one week, a bit of a response.

Four weeks, eight weeks, it had gone back to normal.

The function has been restored, and that is a magic thing.

With insulin production back to normal, the patient's Type Two

Extremely excited, as this is sorting out a condition that has

Now Professor Taylor is undertaking a much bigger study,

backed by a research grant of more than ?2 million.

The large study will actually find out how many people are likdly to be

able to follow this diet in routine general practice, and will diabetes

stay away for the two-year follow-up period of the study?

So how has diabetes actually change of life?

It's basically all the medication I have to take, you know?

But Ed is not waiting around for the results.

He has been fighting his Type Two for years.

Now, in line with Professor Taylor's model, he has decided to restrict

himself to 800 calories a day for eight weeks.

I don't think you are supposed to have them either.

This is going to be difficult, isn't it?

Because the rest of the famhly and going to have to keep

So what is to stop you coming in here and having a raid?

800 calories, that is not a lot, is it?

The normal calorie intake, I think, for a man is around 2, 00.

Where do you fit in on that?

I would possibly say into 3,500 type of thing, you know?

Ed is undertaking this radical diet with the backing of his GP.

Have you actually noticed an increase in Type Two diabetes?

When I first came, we had about 40 patients who were diabetic.

So what do you make of Ted's plan to go on his 800 calorie a day diet?

You will see huge differencds in his cholesterol,

in the amount of sugar in the blood stream,

quickly his arteries are clogging up, which is what does the damage.

There should be enough insulin left to deal with that amount of food

and, as his tummy goes down, there will be less that interfering

Mike's surgery has so many diabetes patients, it has a nurse

Today, she's giving Ed his annual review.

Do you want to step on the scales for me?

144 centimetres, which is 57 inches.

Make a plan, sit down with the family and it's easier, I think.

He is one of more than 200,000 people in the north-east

That is more than 7% of the adult population.

And, in more than a decade, it is expected to rise

In Cumbria, there is a different approach.

Here, the belief is that typically diabetes is a lifelong condhtion.

So the emphasis is on education to reduce the risks,

What are the long-term effects for your health?

We have got nerve damage, we have got our eyes.

Trouble with the kidneys, trouble with the heart.

The course is largely aimed at people with newly

It provides an opportunity both to understand the basics,

to get to grips with the basics but also to share stories, to ask

With Type Two diabetes, the risk is increased.

Here, it is all about behaviour, not just calories.

Back in Newcastle, three weeks have gone by,

A chicken stir-fry, it is all healthy.

I have lost four inches off my waist.

And my sugar levels have gone right down to normal levels,

Have you spotted a difference in him?

Well, he seems a lot happier since he has been doing it.

Really proud of him, he's done really well.

What has been the most difficult thing?

I think mainly the planning of meals.

Not having the same repetithve stuff everyday, you know?

One person that has already achieved success is Alan Donaldson.

We can step outside and walk the hills and get our exercise.

He reversed the threat of diabetes after blood tests three years ago,

I found Roy Taylor's work brilliant and, with in ten weeks,

I'd lost a load of weight and my blood sugar was normal.

My mind controls what made now, not my eyes and my stomach.

Because that is what I do every day now.

I mean, I felt really encouraged by what I've heard from you.

It just gives us the motivation to carry on, you know?

Ted, do you just want to come through?

You were 57 inches, now you're down to 50.

That is seven inches of your waist.

So that, by my reckoning, is 8.6 kilograms lost,

I can tell you, I do feel lighter on my feet,

Best of all, Ed's blood sug`r levels have fallen dramatically,

close to appoint where he can say he is free of the disease.

We are still saying you are diabetic, but it is reversing.

Like I said before, it is working.

Ed has given himself somethhng to smile about and has now

increased his calorie intake to healthy, normal levels.

But that is the real challenge in the months and years to come

to stay away from the bad food habits that

For the time being, many experts believe it is possible

For them, Professor Taylor's views are medical heresy,

and there is a long way to go before he will convince them otherwise.

We expected to be a years before it becomes widely accepted.

We hope it will become part of routine treatment,

but that depends upon the results of the study

Please remember, you should talk to your doctor or, like Ed,

your diabetes nurse before xou start any radical diet.

In the meantime, why not share your experiences or thoughts

My hashtag on Twitter is insideoutcj.

but around one in ten patients has Type One.

This type appears in children and younger adults and has nothing

X Factor finalist Amelia Lily from Teesside

was diagnosed with Type One at an early age,

but she's not allowed the condition to stop her following her dreams.

First thing I do, I go down to the kitchen,

I check my blood sugar before I go on stage.

I check it during, and I check it after.

I have to inject four times a day, with insulin, to make sure

The show I'm in at the moment, American Idiot, I've been

And it is probably the most highly energetic and most "oh my God",

most adrenaline I've felt in my life, for sure.

I was 3.5 when I got type one diabetes.

They had to show me how to hnject, and basically said,

if I didn't inject her, she would die.

There were times when I was having to practically chase Amelia

from behind the settee, get her from under the dining room table.

I literally had to try and hold her down and stick needles

I used to have a fit once a month, either

Bless my mum, she would usually find me on the landing.

I would try and get up and I would fall over,

and she would find me in a horrendous state.

I couldn't have thought of `nything worse happening to my little girl.

You'd rather have it yourself than your child.

This is where we all tend to hang around on a Sunday and

Then, around here, we have wardrobe, with our lovely wardrobe ladies

It came to a point when I had to learn how to inject myself.

We stood in the kitchen, it must have been a good hotr,

trying to inject, and I was trying to encourage.

I was sticking needles in myself, showing her how easy it was,

# Take another little piece of my heart now, baby... #

# You know you got it if it makes you feel good... #

16 years old, on a huge television show, being watched

It was the most incredible and insane experience

I've ever been through, and to cope with my type

one diabetes on top of that was difficult.

It wasn't easy, and her blood sugars were quite erratic,

but she was always on top of the game, constantly

I think diabetes really did help me through X Factor, mainly because it

You know, knowing that I sthll had to deal with the condition whilst

Diabetes has 100% made me stronger as a person.

I think it kind of has to, because, you know, a lot

of people say to me, how do you deal with it every day

when you have got the schedule you do?

I just do it, because I either don't do it or I become really ill.

And then, round the corner, we have the ladies' dressing room,

which is where I basically have created a second home.

So these are part of me, I guess, now.

Basically, if I come off st`ge and my blood sugar is little

bit low during the show, I tend to either have a couple

of swigs of Lucozade or a handful of, like,

Just to get me through the rest of the show.

But then, after the show, I will need something

a little bit more starchy, like a couple of digestive biscuits.

As you can see, you have got a nice, big mirror here,

which is really nice, just a kind of look at yourself

I think there's so many type one diabetics now, you know,

I think it is kind of showing people now, especially people that

are newly diagnosed with type one diabetes, that you can go

on to fulfil your dreams and have the job that

I remember watching Amelia and the X Factor,

I had no idea she was diabetic either.

And you must be Donna, Charlie's mum.

Is this your first time in London?

What do you think of it so far?

Obviously, you are here tod`y to chat to me about diabetes.

I hear you have just been diagnosed with it.

So how have you been finding it so far?

It's not very difficult to manage. That's good! That's a first. I found

it hard when I was younger, but you are older than me when I was

diagnosed, I was 3.5. Do you diagnosed, I was 3.5. Do you

struggle with the injections? Do you know your symptoms, when yotr

struggle with the injections? Do you know your symptoms, when your blood

sugar is dropping or going tp? know your symptoms, when yotr blood

sugar is dropping or going up? I get sugar is dropping or going up? I get

grumpy when I am high, and when I know, feel dizzy. -- when I am low.

Does that hurt? No. How manx times a Does that hurt? No. How manx times a

day do you do that? I do it before I go to bed. I was ill for a while and

my mum decided I was getting skinnier, so she did me to a

my mum decided I was getting skinnier, so she did me to ` walk-in

skinnier, so she did me to a walk-in centre. Pretty much straight away,

they found out I was diabetic. centre. Pretty much straight away,

they found out I was diabethc. It they found out I was diabethc. It

was worrying to start with because she was ill. They told us to go

straight to hospital. Straight away, they put a gripping each arm.

straight to hospital. Straight away, they put a gripping each arl. She

does not feel sorry for herself anyway. Occasionally, you gdt a bit

anyway. Occasionally, you get a bit down about it, don't you? But it is

a case of there being worse things in the world, it just is ch`nging

in the world, it just is changing little things in your life. It has

not changed anything that I do. I still do most things, but I eat.

Your attitude towards it is amazing, especially since you are 12. It is a

massive learning curve, having it. especially since you are 12. It is a

massive learning curve, havhng it. I have learned a lot from getting

older with it. I think it is important that we do show pdople

important that we do show people that you can have a normal life

# Sleeping in this bed alond... #

Nothing is out of her reach, just because she has diabetes. She is a

role model to a lot of young children who are getting thhs awful

never stopped her doing anything never stopped her doing anything

that she wants to do. Her n`me never stopped her doing anything

that she wants to do. Her name is up that she wants to do. Her name is up

in lights, and that can be `ll these in lights, and that can be all these

children as well. I'm in control. It is up to yourself. If you are

willing to look after yourself, you willing to look after yoursdlf, you

can absolutely go on to have can absolutely go on to have

whatever job you want to do. I could not imagine my life without it, and

I think it has made me the person I am today.

And pots of luck to Amelia whose new show, Shout,

But from our rather modest end-of-the-pier,

Next week, we ask whether flood hit homes and businesses

have recovered from last year's devastation.

Till then, from Saltburn, good night.

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