# BCG tuberculosis vaccine reverses diabetes?
**URL:** https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/bcg-tuberculosis-vaccine-reverses-diabetes/4272
**Category:** New T1/LADA
**Created:** [June 23, 2018, 4:09pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/bcg-tuberculosis-vaccine-reverses-diabetes/4272 "2018-06-23T16:09:36Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Irish](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/Irish)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2018, 4:09pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/bcg-tuberculosis-vaccine-reverses-diabetes/4272/1 "2018-06-23T16:09:36Z")
Okay, okay. I used the word reverses in the title to be a little catchy, but interesting results, despite the hair-pulling statistics erroneously cited in this article.
Also, my sincere apologies for dropping off in recent months. This forum is still the very best!
> **[BCG vaccine can reverse Type 1 diabetes to almost undetectable levels,...](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2018/06/21/bcg-vaccine-can-reverse-type-1-diabetes-almost-undetectable/)**
>
> The BCG vaccine against tuberculosis can reverse Type 1 diabetes to almost undetectable levels, an eight-year study has shown.
Any other more detailed articles out there? I haven’t searched yet, but would guess you all have seen (and possibly discussed) this already.
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### Author:  [@Eric](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/Eric)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2018, 5:46pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/bcg-tuberculosis-vaccine-reverses-diabetes/4272/2 "2018-06-23T17:46:12Z")
> [@Irish](#):
>
> Any other more detailed articles out there? I haven’t searched yet, but would guess you all have seen (and possibly discussed) this already.
This thing is a bandaid. It only changes how people are metabolizing carbs. It’s kind of the same thing you would get from exercise.
The treatment shifts how glucose is metabolized. It moves from using oxidative phosphorylation to using more aerobic glycolysis.
Oxidative phosphorylation is a metabolic pathway that allows cells to oxidize nutrients and release energy (adenosine triphosphate - ATP). This metabolic pathway is very efficient, you can get a lot of energy from the nutrients.
By shifting to a less efficient (but much faster) form of energy creation - aerobic glycolysis - you increase the amount of carbs the cells use.
It’s basically the same effect you get from exercise. You know how when you exercise you need less insulin and your BG is lower? Same thing with this treatment.
It might be able to help people with their control, but the terms “cure” or “reversal” are just foolishness. It is tinkering with how you use carbs to create energy. So there is certainly some downside to it. I imagine it would impact low energy efficiency. I personally would not want to do that.
Here are some pictures from a book I have that show where these things fit into the whole energy system.
