READ 'RECLAIMING HEALTH' ONLINE: CHAPTER BY CHAPTER

Part 1 is available online. Parts 2 & 3 will be up soon. :)

We welcome your use of this resource but please cite:

PSGRNZ (2026) Reclaiming Health: Reversal, Remission & Rewiring. Understanding & Addressing the Primary Drivers of New Zealand’s Metabolic & Mental Health Crisis. Bruning, J.R., Physicians & Scientists for Global Responsibility New Zealand. ISBN 978-1-0670678-2-3

NB: Page numbers refer to the page number on the original Reclaiming Health PDF.

INTRODUCTION

PART I. FOUNDATIONS: METABOLIC DYSFUNCTION & THE RISE OF MULTIMORBIDITY.

THE PROBLEM: CASCADING METABOLIC IMPAIRMENT DRIVING MULTIMORBIDITY 1

From 2015 Onwards – Escalating Evidence. 4
The January 2026 U.S. Dietary Guideline Shift. 6

THE TOTAL CARBOHYDRATE BURDEN & INDIVIDUAL VULNERABILITY. 9

The Carbohydrate-Insulin Model. 11
Metabolic Syndrome & Type Two Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). 15
Coronary Artery / Heart Disease Risk. 17
Saturated Fats and Cholesterol – guilty by association? 18
The Inflammatory Cascade that Drives Multimorbidity, & High Sensitivity C-reactive Protein. 22

BRAIN HEALTH: CONSISTENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH METABOLIC DYSFUNCTION 27

The gut-brain connection. 29
Introducing Nutritional Psychiatry. 32
Are Symptoms of Inadequate Nutrition Misclassified as Psychiatric Disorders? 36

THE CARBOHYDRATE-DOPAMINE CYCLE: AMPLIFIED BY ULTRAPROCESSED FOOD 37

Hyperpalatability & Food Addiction. 37
Current Ultraprocessed Food Intakes Associated with Poor Health Outcomes. 41
Satiety, Glycaemic Volatility and the Drivers of Addictive Eating. 44

ETHICAL CATASTROPHE: THE GREATER BURDEN ON LOW-INCOME GROUPS & YOUNG PEOPLE 47

Diabetes Epidemic: The Ethics of Failing to Prevent T2DM in Children & Adolescents. 48
Prediabetes: The Quiet Threat Beneath the Surface. 49
Not Only Nutrition: Environmental Toxins and the Human Exposome. 51
Oral Health Opportunity: Correlates with common metabolic conditions. 56

PART II. GOVERNMENT AGENCIES ‘DRAFT OUT’ INDIVIDUAL BIOLOGY & MULTIMORBIDITY. 60

NEW ZEALAND’S CARBOHYDRATE-RICH GUIDELINES 60

HEALTH TARGETS DECOUPLED FROM POLICIES. NO POWER TO STOP RISING DISEASE RATES 62

Health Policy: A Prevention Framework That Sidelines Nutrition. 64
Nutrition: The Missing Pillar in New Zealand’s Health Policy and Prevention Strategy. 67

HEALTH, RESEARCH & ACADEMIC SECTOR: NO PATHWAYS FOR KNOWLEDGE. 69

‘Outside the Work Programme’: Dietary Nutrition’s Impact on Metabolic and Mental Health. 70
Systemic Neglect of Nutrition and Environmental Health Research. 72
Barriers to Clinical Testing for Toxicity, Genetic Variants and Nutrient Status. 75
Public Health Blindspot: The Addictive Potential of Industrial Ultraprocessed Foods. 76
Global Blindspot: When Health Guidance Focusses more on Climate than on Nutrient Sufficiency. 78
Dietary approaches: A Survey of the Food/Diet Health NGO Landscape. 81
When Cumulative Daily Carbohydrate Intakes are Ignored: The $3 School Lunch Programme. 82
Health System Architecture Bias to Consistently Favour Medical Interventions. 85
Is Governance Failing? 88

PART III. REFORM. FOCUS ON HUMAN BIOLOGY. 90

TYPE 2 DIABETES: REMISSION IS REAL 90

Type 1 diabetes mellitus: Carb Control Sees Improvements in Health Biomarkers & Quality of Life. 91

WHOLE OF SYSTEM REFORM: HEALTH COACHING CENTRAL TO REVERSAL & REMISSION OF METABOLIC & MENTAL ILLNESS 92

Low-Carb Approaches in New Zealand: 2025 Audit of Three Primary Care Practices. 94
Deprescribing Following Improvements in Blood Pressure, Insulin, Weight and Lipid Profile. 98

WHOLE OF SYSTEM REFORM - KEYS TO SUCCESS: 99

Respecting Individual Sensitivity to Dietary Interventions. 99
Food Addiction Counselling to address Ultraprocessed Food Addiction. 102
Technologies to support patient knowledge: Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices. 105
Technologies to support patient knowledge: Breath Ketone Sensors. 107
Technologies to support patient knowledge: Digital Apps. 107
The Question of Protein Choice. 108

WHOLE OF SYSTEM REFORM: IN BRIEF 111

DIET FIRST APPROACHES IN LOCAL COMMUNITIES. 111
EDUCATIONAL REFORM 113
INSTITUTIONAL & REGULATORY REFORM. 114
SCIENCE SYSTEM REFORM 115

CONCLUSION: REVERSING SURGING MULTIMORBIDITY WITH ‘FANTASTICALLY CHEERFUL MEDICINE’ 117

GLOSSARY 119

READ 'RECLAIMING HEALTH' ONLINE: CHAPTER BY CHAPTER

PART I. FOUNDATIONS: METABOLIC DYSFUNCTION & THE RISE OF MULTIMORBIDITY.

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