Understanding remission

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griffinsmom

griffinsmom

Member Since 2022
Hi everyone,
Griffin and I are new here, just got diagnosed on Friday. Things are going well so far. I've read all the files, we are testing a he doesn't even notice his insulin injections. Luckily for me he's a very chill cat and puts up with a lot.
I'm having trouble understanding what causes remission, switching to a low carb food? getting good glycemic control? I understand the physiology of Type2 diabetes in humans and how using a low carb diet can cause human remission, but....
Griffin has been raw fed since we got him as a kitten, so switching to a lower carb food isn't going to happen, does this mean it's unlikely we'll actually get him into remission? I'm probably overthinking all of this, just want to give him (and me) the best chance at remission.
Thanks for helping me understand.
Melissa
 
Hi, that is an interesting question. I think there are other factors than just being fed a high carb diet. And with those cats that have been on a high carb diet switching to a low carb isn't enough to put them into remission right away. They still need insulin for a while.

From what I read other factors are:
  • Age: most cats are over 8 years of age with a peak incidence between 10 and 13 years of age.
  • Sex: Male cats are 1.5 times more predisposed to diabetes than female cats.
  • Breed: Burmese cats appear to be four times more affected by diabetes mellitus than other breeds, and about 10% of Burmese cats over the age of eight are diagnosed with this disease.
  • Other diseases: acromegaly, pancreatitis, pancreatic cancer and hyperadrenocorticism are all hormonal disturbances that affect the body’s response to insulin.
  • Also obesity and physical inactivity.
  • Being on corticosteroids like prednisone
From what I understand( though I am no expert), insulin injections allows the cats bg to get back into a normal range. And when it is in a normal range their body and insulin producing cell begin to heal and start producing enough insulin on their own.

In other words, just because your kitty's diabetes wasn't caused by a high carb diet, doesn't mean he can't go into remission.
 
Hi Melissa, your question is a really good one! Good glycemic control without insulin is what remission is. One of the things about the FDMB that is interesting is that insulin is not only for regulation, but once you can get the cat into more regulated numbers (between 50-100), we find that the body can heal and stop overreacting to drops in numbers with hyperglycemia. Remission is ideally achieved within the first year of diagnosis and it gets harder after that, but not impossible as I have seen many cats go into remission after being diabetic for two years or more.
 
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Katherine&Ruby said:
Hi Melissa, your question is a really good one! Good glycemic control without insulin is what remission is. One of the things about the FDMB that is interesting is that insulin is not only for regulation, but once you can get the cat into more regulated numbers (between 50-100), we find that the body can heal and stop overreacting to drops in numbers with hyperglycemia. Remission is ideally achieved within the first year of diagnosis and it gets harder after that, but not impossible as I have seen many cats go into remission after being diabetic for two years or more.
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Good to know we might be looking at a year before remission, I might have misunderstood or it might have been wishful thinking but my vet made it seem like remission is weeks to months away.
 
If the cat is already on raw (and kudos to you for feeding him the best food possible!), something else might be going on. When was the last time he had his teeth checked? Steroid use will also sometimes cause unregulated BGs. There have been some cats who take just a few weeks. My Ruby was tightly regulated with a month and a half of coming to the FDMB and following the guidance but she remained on small dose for a long time because she was not going to have a strong remission because her numbers weren’t below 100 enough of the time to warrant taking her off insulin completely.
 
Katherine&Ruby said:
If the cat is already on raw (and kudos to you for feeding him the best food possible!), something else might be going on. When was the last time he had his teeth checked? Steroid use will also sometimes cause unregulated BGs. There have been some cats who take just a few weeks. My Ruby was tightly regulated with a month and a half of coming to the FDMB and following the guidance but she remained on small dose for a long time because she was not going to have a strong remission because her numbers weren’t below 100 enough of the time to warrant taking her off insulin completely.
Click to expand...

Thanks for giving me hope Katherine. He just had his teeth done a year ago, and the vet said they looked good at this last visit, never had steroids, and we did a full senior blood panel on Friday to see what else is going on, I'm anxiously awaiting results today. (Had both cats in on Friday and my other 16yo cat is hyperthyroid with CKD, so anxious about everyone's results today). It's because of the great CKD Facebook group that I knew to search for you guys as soon as he got diagnosed.

I know us die hard raw feeders like to believe raw food will prevent these things but I guess genetics are proving the stronger factor here.
 
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