Thanks SJ. Do you have a citation for the low-carb diet working for 90 percent of folks (espeically beyond a year)? I am delighted to hear it worked for you, but I am curious where you got the 90 number. In terms of weight, of course I would like all of us to be in the optimal range, but the American reality is that that is not going to happen. I begin with getting patients to stabilize or drop a bit. Harping on more, more, more rarely works for me and others in clinical practice. In principle, I agree with you. In practice (de facto), well... Re: Specific diets - I do wish I had a nickel for everyone who teaches me the "best" restrictive diet for all, LOL. Keto, low fat, high fat, fasting. You get the point. I celebrate your success, though.

You have probably dodged early death while lowering your risks of numerous chronic diseases. On the numbers thing, yes: HbA1c is important. Get a baseline A1C test if you're an adult over age 45—or if you're under 45, are overweight, and have one or more risk factors for prediabetes or type 2 diabetes: If your result is normal but you're over 45, have risk factors, or have ever had gestational diabetes, repeat the A1C test every 3 years. US CDC recommendations. Thanks for your input, S.J., especially ther Areminder about HbA1c/glucose. ppreciate you.

Michael