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Michael Dansinger, MD

Michael Dansinger, MDMichael Dansinger, MD

Assistant Professor,Tufts University, School of Medicine

Nutrition
Obesity

44 Answers20 Followers2,369 Helpful Answer Votes
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Bio

Michael Dansinger, MD, is a nationally recognized authority on dietary and lifestyle counseling for weight loss and disease prevention. He is the nutrition doctor for NBC's hit prime time series The Biggest Loser, and a contributor to the best-selling book series based on the show. He has been interviewed about his weight loss experience on the Today show, CNN, National Public Radio, Oprah magazine, Time magazine, Consumer Reports, USA Today, the New York Times, and many other media organizations.Dansinger holds multiple academic positions. He is the clinical nutrition and obesity editor for the Medscape Journal of Medicine, an assistant professor at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, a scientist with the USDA Nutrition Research Center, and a member of the division of endocrinology at Tufts-New England Medical Center.His research on dietary counseling in well known. He published the research study "Comparison of the Atkins, Ornish, Weight Watchers and Zone Diets for Weight Loss and Cardiac Risk Reduction" in The Journal of the American Medical Association in January 2005. He is currently conducting a clinical trial to determine the effectiveness of the USDA food pyramid and a low-starch version of the food pyramid for weight loss and heart disease reduction. He directs a "Diabetes Reversal Program" where he uses lifestyle coaching to achieve diabetes remission in over 25% of his patients.

Credentials

Organization Affiliations:
  • Tufts Medical Center
  • NBC's The Biggest Loser
  • USDA Nutrition Research Center
 

My Answers

Q. What kind of exercise is beneficial for people with diabetes?
A. Aerobic exercise and resistance training are both beneficial for diabetes and lower the hemoglobin A1c levels. Structured exercise programs...
Q. How like is it that I develop diabetes in my life?
A. One in three American adults has prediabetes, and to make matters worse, only a small fraction of these people know it! I consider this to be a...
Q. Should artificial trans fats be banned?
A. Four years ago ... I called for a national ban on partially hydrogenated trans fat, an artificially manufactured, harmful fat that promotes heart...
Q. Is oatmeal good for diabetes?
A. I personally have never liked the taste or texture of oatmeal. This is unexpected because I like the taste of almost all foods I have ever tried...
Q. I’m diabetic, in the hospital and was given a non-diabetic meal the first morning. How can I eat right while I’m here?
A. I've generally been unhappy with the hospital food served to patients. My main complaint is too much refined starch. Food is generally bland or...
Q. My mom's cousin says she can no longer taste food as a result of metformin. Have you noticed this in your patients?
A. My mom's cousin says she can no longer taste food because of a side effect of metformin and now weighs less than 100 pounds. Have you noticed this in...
Q. What are the steps for weaning off diabetes medication?
A. One of my greatest pleasures in life is to help patients achieve remission of their type 2 diabetes. This means their blood sugar levels have become...
Q. My bedtime blood sugar was 134. This morning it was 113. What is the normal range?
A. Normal blood glucose readings are: Fasting: 70-100. Two hours after a meal: 100-140. Your fasting blood glucose reading of 113 could indicate pre...
Q. Is it true that exercise is not beneficial to really heavy people until they lose weight and get their metabolism going?
A. I do think the exercise part is important. Perhaps not as important as eating properly, but still important. People with obesity who exercise and...
Q. Is it true that it isn't good to do the same exercise every day to allow muscles to rebuild with a 48-hour break?
A. In my view, the 48-hour break is applicable to maximal weight-bearing exercise (high resistance/low reps). This type of exercise strategy presumably...
Q. How important is antibody testing for someone with diabetes?
A. I believe antibody testing for type 1 diabetes is useful in patients for whom it is not obvious whether it is type 1 or type 2. It is worth testing...
Q. I am a type 2 diabetic, and my kidneys are in the beginning stages of breakdown. How can I slow that process?
A. strategies for fighting diabetes are pretty much the same as the strategies for fighting diabetic kidney disease. Doctors and patients try to keep...
Q. How does the brain “know" a situation needs a "flight" response? Can false signals raise blood pressure and blood sugar?
A. In chronic stress, particularly when a person lives with long-standing uncertainty about safety or shelter or other risky situations, there is a...
Q. How does the brain “know" a situation needs a "flight" response? Can false signals raise blood pressure and blood sugar?
A. In chronic stress, particularly when a person lives with long-standing uncertainty about safety or shelter or other risky situations, there is a...
Q. Can post-traumatic stress disorder affect the adrenal glands? I have PTSD, and have difficulty handling stress.
A. PTSD is an example of the overstimulated fight/flight center and stress hormones. All the more reason to try to offset this effect with careful...
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