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  #16   ^
Old Fri, Mar-10-17, 13:12
GRB5111's Avatar
GRB5111 GRB5111 is offline
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Posts: 4,036
 
Plan: Very LC, Higher Protein
Stats: 227/186/185 Male 6' 0"
BF:
Progress: 98%
Location: Herndon, VA
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I find it telling that the naysayers immediately think it's not sustainable. Some are medical professionals, others are business investors:

Quote:
From David Shaywitz: On a personal level, can you imagine a life essentially bereft of birthday cake, pizza, French fries and blueberry pie? After all, the trouble with most diets isn’t that they don’t work–it’s just that they aren’t sustainable. When embarked on for weight loss, just about all fail in the long term; the statistics are staggeringly depressing.

Umm, yes, if you want to live a reasonably high quality life for longer than your acquaintances who regularly eat this garbage! It will take time, but when faced with significantly decreasing quality of health including impaired vision, potential heart disease, stroke, and amputation in the future, I would hope one could overcome the carb addiction in favor of life. It's been a cute thing for people to joke about sweets and desserts almost like we're all in on the joke because, hey, wink, wink, there's nothing wrong with a balanced diet and occasional indiscretions in consuming stuff that masquerades as food. But maybe that's what this is, that there are some who would rather live their lives in shortened form with pain and discomfort at the end because some foods are just so good. We shall see, and Virta is the potential petri dish that enables us to watch it happen.
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  #17   ^
Old Fri, Mar-10-17, 16:09
WereBear's Avatar
WereBear WereBear is offline
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Posts: 14,602
 
Plan: EpiPaleo/Primal/LowOx
Stats: 220/125/150 Female 67
BF:
Progress: 136%
Location: USA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GRB5111
But maybe that's what this is, that there are some who would rather live their lives in shortened form with pain and discomfort at the end because some foods are just so good.


I think it's more a case of:
  • I don't want to believe it
  • I don't believe it
  • I will continue to act as though it is not true

It is like smoking: the consequences are so far downstream that our minds have trouble making the connections between cause and effect.

Because if someone were reach for a slice of birthday cake and somebody else pulled a gun and said, "Touch it and I'll shoot..." how many people would still grab the treat?
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  #18   ^
Old Mon, Mar-13-17, 13:28
JEY100's Avatar
JEY100 JEY100 is online now
Posts: 13,368
 
Plan: P:E/DDF
Stats: 225/150/169 Female 5' 9"
BF:45%/28%/25%
Progress: 134%
Location: NC
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Virta Health has a blog on its website, and posts new stories on its FB.
https://www.facebook.com/virtahealth. The press release is slowly spreading around the business news outlets, on one local TV station, and a longevity network. http://www.longevitynetwork.org/new...pe-ii-diabetes/

Last edited by JEY100 : Tue, Mar-14-17 at 05:09.
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  #19   ^
Old Tue, Apr-11-17, 04:10
JEY100's Avatar
JEY100 JEY100 is online now
Posts: 13,368
 
Plan: P:E/DDF
Stats: 225/150/169 Female 5' 9"
BF:45%/28%/25%
Progress: 134%
Location: NC
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Tackling Weight Loss and Diabetes with a Video Chat, NYT article by Anahad O'Connor today about VIRTA Health and the LC diet used.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/11/...ideo-chats.html
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  #20   ^
Old Tue, Apr-11-17, 10:13
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deirdra deirdra is offline
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Posts: 4,324
 
Plan: vLC/GF,CF,SF
Stats: 197/136/150 Female 66 inches
BF:
Progress: 130%
Location: Alberta
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I could easily make LC versions of birthday cake, pizza, French fries and blueberry pie if I wanted them. But I'd rather have a juicy steak or roast chicken with crispy skin and some colourful veggies sautéd in butter or with full fat salad dressing. Tuna with lots of home-made mayo, mashed cauliflower with plenty of butter and salt. Back in my sugar-filled days I would eat broccoli (rarely) because it is good for you, but now I actually find myself wanting broccoli (steamed al dente, with butter or oil).

I recently had a bite of red velvet cake that everyone was raving about since I had never had it; it was red but had no taste whatsoever and the icing was basically over-sweetened Crisco with a chemical note due to the food colouring. Ugh.
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  #21   ^
Old Tue, Apr-25-17, 09:34
JEY100's Avatar
JEY100 JEY100 is online now
Posts: 13,368
 
Plan: P:E/DDF
Stats: 225/150/169 Female 5' 9"
BF:45%/28%/25%
Progress: 134%
Location: NC
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Virta Health founder and Dr Sarah Hallberg on The Doctors yesterday, with a patient who had reversed her diabetes.

https://www.dietdoctor.com/reversin...s-virta-doctors

A very low carb diet to Reverse Diabetes is getting great press from Virta!
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  #22   ^
Old Tue, Apr-25-17, 10:12
GRB5111's Avatar
GRB5111 GRB5111 is offline
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Posts: 4,036
 
Plan: Very LC, Higher Protein
Stats: 227/186/185 Male 6' 0"
BF:
Progress: 98%
Location: Herndon, VA
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Very glad to see this happening for the right reasons. So much that is unhealthy is freely marketed today without regards to ethics. It's nice to see the marketing of something that, as Dr. Hallberg states, is "transformative."
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  #23   ^
Old Sun, May-07-17, 11:27
JEY100's Avatar
JEY100 JEY100 is online now
Posts: 13,368
 
Plan: P:E/DDF
Stats: 225/150/169 Female 5' 9"
BF:45%/28%/25%
Progress: 134%
Location: NC
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Wonderful new 18 minute documentary film about Sami Inkinen and Virta Health, produced by Diet Doctor:
https://www.dietdoctor.com/member/movies/inkinen

Mission: Reverse Diabetes – Our Most Ambitious Film Project Yet
https://www.dietdoctor.com/mission-...ilm-project-yet
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  #24   ^
Old Sun, May-07-17, 19:16
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Merpig Merpig is offline
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Plan: EF/Fung IDM/keto
Stats: 375/225.4/175 Female 66.5 inches
BF:
Progress: 75%
Location: NE Florida
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Quote:
Originally Posted by deirdra
I could easily make LC versions of birthday cake, pizza, French fries and blueberry pie if I wanted them. But I'd rather have a juicy steak or roast chicken with crispy skin and some colourful veggies sautéd in butter or with full fat salad dressing...I recently had a bite of red velvet cake that everyone was raving about since I had never had it; it was red but had no taste whatsoever and the icing was basically over-sweetened Crisco with a chemical note due to the food colouring. Ugh.
Alas, despite 11 years of LC, and 8 years with a 100-pound loss I'd *still* rather have birthday cake, pizza and blueberry pie. I'm not a big fan of meat though I eat it - but it's not that appealing to me. I love roasted veggies with some salt and butter, and probably garlic. But they don't call my name like ice cream does! I admit that red velvet cake sounds pretty awful though. I've never understood the appeal of dumping a whole bottle of red food coloring into something!
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  #25   ^
Old Sun, May-07-17, 20:13
Merpig's Avatar
Merpig Merpig is offline
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Posts: 7,582
 
Plan: EF/Fung IDM/keto
Stats: 375/225.4/175 Female 66.5 inches
BF:
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Location: NE Florida
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cotonpal
I couldn't find any information on the site about cost.
From the NY Times article:
Quote:
Virta’s out-of-pocket cost is $400 a month. But the company offers financial assistance based on a patient’s ability to pay. And it is low or no cost for patients whose employer or health plan sponsors it.
also from the comments:
Quote:
Virta is $400 a month. And that's just for "advice" and a phone app.

They don't give you any actual food, nor testing in a lab by scientists as to your specific needs or type of diabetes (even among Type 2s, there is much variation).

Among the hilarities here: Virta costs $400 a month. (Even if your insurance is paying for most of it....somebody is still paying.)

It claims to save $14,000 in medical costs over 10 years.

But $400 a month is $4800 a year, for 10 years that is $48,000 total!

And that assumes they NEVER raise their prices in 10 years.
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  #26   ^
Old Mon, May-08-17, 09:25
WereBear's Avatar
WereBear WereBear is offline
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Posts: 14,602
 
Plan: EpiPaleo/Primal/LowOx
Stats: 220/125/150 Female 67
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Progress: 136%
Location: USA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Merpig
From the NY Times article: also from the comments:

It claims to save $14,000 in medical costs over 10 years.

But $400 a month is $4800 a year, for 10 years that is $48,000 total!


That is weird. I thought they were providing something more than... what, a "diet coach?"

Or is it what I call the Nutrasystem Effect?

One long winter evening, I stumbled into a bunch of Nutrasystem reviews, and it was fascinating. Because they believed in the "magic" of Nutrasystem; bemoaning that they could not afford it but are saving up to "do it again."

I was appalled. There was nothing special about this food. In fact, anyone with a phone calculator could cruise through the supermarket and throw prefab food into their cart and wind up with better tasting results for far less money.

But they would not do that. Or could not. Or something. These were people who seemed to have no problem just eating what they were told in this highly structured program. And lacked the ability to do it for themselves.
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  #27   ^
Old Mon, May-08-17, 10:55
JEY100's Avatar
JEY100 JEY100 is online now
Posts: 13,368
 
Plan: P:E/DDF
Stats: 225/150/169 Female 5' 9"
BF:45%/28%/25%
Progress: 134%
Location: NC
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Virta is initially going for the employer paid plans. If employers can get their diabetic employees off expensive medications and avoid surgeries in the future, the cost savings would be huge. Many larger employers self-insure some part of their health care expenses. It appeared the individual market would be a "next step" in scaling up.

And Virta was able to work out having doctors who advise patients on-line and across state lines. The legal hurdles to do this is major.

From NYT: "On the program, patients video-chat with a remote Virta doctor, who consults with their primary care doctor, reviews their blood tests and medical history, and makes diet and drug recommendations. "

And then: "Every day, patients use an app to upload their blood sugar levels, blood pressure, body weight and other measurements. A health coach, usually a registered dietitian, monitors their data and checks in by phone, text or email to discuss any problems or just to provide daily encouragement."

Their staff are not your average WW "diet coach".
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  #28   ^
Old Mon, May-08-17, 10:56
WereBear's Avatar
WereBear WereBear is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 14,602
 
Plan: EpiPaleo/Primal/LowOx
Stats: 220/125/150 Female 67
BF:
Progress: 136%
Location: USA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JEY100
Their staff are not your average WW "diet coach".


Excellent! That is more like I had envisioned it, thanks.
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  #29   ^
Old Mon, May-08-17, 12:17
Merpig's Avatar
Merpig Merpig is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 7,582
 
Plan: EF/Fung IDM/keto
Stats: 375/225.4/175 Female 66.5 inches
BF:
Progress: 75%
Location: NE Florida
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by WereBear
One long winter evening, I stumbled into a bunch of Nutrasystem reviews, and it was fascinating. Because they believed in the "magic" of Nutrasystem; bemoaning that they could not afford it but are saving up to "do it again."

I was appalled. There was nothing special about this food. In fact, anyone with a phone calculator could cruise through the supermarket and throw prefab food into their cart and wind up with better tasting results for far less money.

But they would not do that. Or could not. Or something. These were people who seemed to have no problem just eating what they were told in this highly structured program. And lacked the ability to do it for themselves.
Yeah, there are a lot of comments at the NY Times article about "why not just google low carb diets or buy a low carb diet book and do it yourself and save $400/month?" which of course is what many of us do here.

But not everyone can. We have lots of drop-outs here even though folks can come here any time for advice or pep talks. And there is always the fact that one size does NOT fit all. Maybe their virta docs can help fine tune what you eat. I have to admit the whole "upload your weight daily" turned me off. As one commenter noted, a weekly weight check is probably more meaningful than a daily one. I *am* one of those who find I MUST weight daily to have any hope of progress, but I don't think everyone is comfortable with that.

At any rate, $400/month is so far out of my budget that it's a moot point. I might give it a try, though, if my employer sponsored it. But since I'm retired and have no employer or employer health plan I guess that's pretty unlikely too.
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  #30   ^
Old Fri, Jun-16-17, 08:10
JEY100's Avatar
JEY100 JEY100 is online now
Posts: 13,368
 
Plan: P:E/DDF
Stats: 225/150/169 Female 5' 9"
BF:45%/28%/25%
Progress: 134%
Location: NC
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Update from Virta Health and Dr Sarah Hallberg on the results at one year for their clinical trial. Stunning health improvements and a very low drop out rate...so much for the "LC diet is not sustainable" argument.

http://blog.virtahealth.com/virtas-...sarah-hallberg/
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