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Dr Ula: The disease of too much

Updated: 3 days ago

Nothing ages your body faster than Type 2 diabetes.


Dr Ula Heywood
Continuous glucose monitor (CGM) - A insightful device we provide clients to uncover their unique glucose regulation.

After this lesson you'll know...

  • How to prevent—and even reverse—Type 2 diabetes 

  • What your “normal” test results might be missing 

  • The 5 tests Autonomy uses to stop Type 2 diabetes progression in its tracks 


Let’s talk about Type 2 diabetes. Not Type 1 which is an autoimmune dysfunction. This is about metabolic overload. Too much food. Too much insulin. Too little attention—until it’s too late.


Type 2 diabetes doesn’t just raise blood sugar. It hardens arteries. Dulls cognition. Fuels inflammation. It increases your risk of cancer. It accelerates ageing from the inside out. 

Metabolic Syndrome: The silent alarm 

Metabolic Syndrome—MetS—is one of the most overlooked medical discoveries of the past 30 years. You’re diagnosed with MetS when you have 3 out of these 5 conditions:

  • Excess belly fat (visceral fat) 

  • High triglycerides 

  • Low HDL cholesterol (the heart-protective kind) 

  • High blood pressure 

  • High fasting glucose 


Almost one-third of US adults have it. In New Zealand, it’s about one in four—and rising. But here’s what most people miss: metabolic dysfunction doesn’t always look like obesity. You’ve heard of “thin on the outside, fat on the inside”? That’s real. 


At the core of it all is chronic insulin resistance. What drives that? Hyperinsulinaemia—too much insulin, too often, for too long. And it starts long before your glucose levels cross the line. 


The real cost of waiting 


Dr Jason Fung, a Canadian nephrologist and diabetes expert, shares some sobering statistics: 5 kg gained after age 18 leads to a 90% increase in diabetes risk. An 8-11kg gain increases your risk by 270% and from there the risk accelerates exponentially. 

Even women with a “normal” BMI (23–23.9) have a 360% higher diabetes risk than those under BMI of 22. Diabetes also strips women of their usual cardiovascular advantage—levelling the playing field with men on heart disease far too soon. 


This isn’t just about blood sugar. It’s about lifespan, brain health, and health span. It’s about protecting your future—while you still can. 


What the experts are really saying 

Across disciplines, the world’s most credible metabolic health leaders—Dr Jason Fung, Dr Peter Attia, and Dr Aseem Malhotra—are all pointing to the same core issue: Too much insulin for too long. 


They challenge the outdated idea that Type 2 diabetes is permanent. It’s not. 

With the right intervention—low-carbohydrate eating, intermittent fasting, real food, and early tracking—diabetes can be prevented, even reversed


They argue that conventional advice is not just ineffective—it’s part of the problem. And they back it up with real-world data: billions in avoidable healthcare costs, hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths. 


This isn’t fringe medicine. It’s the medicine of the future. 

What is HbA1c test—And why it matters early 

HbA1c measures your average blood glucose over the past 2–3 months. It’s one of the most widely used early indicators of metabolic dysfunction and your risk of Type 2 diabetes:

  • Under 40 mmol/mol (< 5.9%) is healthy

  • 41–49 mmol/mol (6.0%–6.6%) is prediabetic

  • 50 mmol/mol and above (≥ 6.7%) is Type 2 diabetic


But here’s the problem: most people are told to “watch and wait” until HbA1c hits 50+. That means no action while damage is already underway and an unfortunate outcome is predictable.

Prediabetes isn’t a grey zone. It’s red alert. 

What we do at Autonomy

We focus on catching the early signs. We test what matters most. We act before damage becomes diagnosis. Here’s what we track: 

Test

What it measures

Metabolic health indicator

Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM)

Real-time blood glucose fluctuations over days or weeks

Tracks how food, exercise, and stress affect glucose control—reveals early insulin resistance patterns

Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT)

Glucose and insulin response over 2 hours after a glucose load

Detects impaired glucose tolerance and hyperinsulinaemia—precursors to Type 2 diabetes

HbA1c

Average blood glucose levels over the past 2–3 months

A long-term indicator of glycaemic control; used to diagnose and monitor diabetes

Cortisol (Stress Load)

Cortisol levels in saliva

Elevated or disrupted cortisol patterns can drive insulin resistance, visceral fat gain, and impaired glucose metabolism

Blood Pressure

Force of blood against artery walls

High blood pressure often coexists with insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome

Visceral Fat

Amount of fat stored around internal organs

Strongly linked to insulin resistance, inflammation, and increased risk of Type 2 diabetes

Chronic Inflammation Markers

Levels of inflammatory cytokines or proteins

Low-grade chronic inflammation worsens insulin resistance and accelerates metabolic decline


We also assess sleep quality using wearables, because poor sleep raises glucose, cortisol, and inflammation levels. 


Then we zoom out. We combine these insights into a full, medically grounded picture of your metabolic health—and your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. 


At Autonomy, we help clients not just prevent—but reverse—prediabetes. 

From insight to impact 

At Autonomy our doctors and coaches don’t just tell you what to do. We show you how to do it—step by step. This is your early warning. 

Book your Discovery Consultation today.


Dr. Ula Co-Founder and Lead Physician, Autonomy

 





References:

  • NZ Ministry of Health Diabetes Management Guidelines

  • Fung, J. The Diabetes Code (2018), referencing Nurses' Health Study and multiple cohort studies

  • Zhang, C. et al. “A prospective study of BMI and risk of Type 2 Diabetes among women.” Diabetes Care (2006).


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