Dri phil's diabetic cure

Checked on January 3, 2026
Disclaimer: Factually can make mistakes. Please verify important information or breaking news. Learn more.

Executive summary

Dr. Phil McGraw does not claim a cure for diabetes; his public message and programs focus on long-term management through lifestyle change, medication where appropriate, and psychological strategies to sustain healthy habits [1] [2] [3]. He has partnered with pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca on an “ON IT” campaign and discloses using AstraZeneca’s Bydureon as part of his own Type 2 diabetes regimen, which underscores that his approach combines behavior change with prescription therapy rather than offering a cure [4] [5].

1. What Dr. Phil actually says: diabetes is manageable, not cured

Dr. Phil has repeatedly relayed that when he was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes his physician told him “there’s no cure for it,” but that it is “very manageable if you want to put in the effort,” and he frames his public work around that reality—encouraging sustained attention to diet, exercise, medication and glucose monitoring [1] [2]. His public remarks and interviews emphasize personal accountability and replacing “bad habits with new ones,” language consistent with behavior-change models rather than any narrative of eradication of the disease [2] [6].

2. The specific toolkit he promotes: diet, movement, monitoring, medication

Across interviews and campaign materials, Dr. Phil highlights classic Type 2 diabetes management tools—healthy eating, regular physical activity, blood-sugar monitoring and medication when needed—which align with mainstream clinical advice for managing the condition [2] [7]. He also authors and promotes diet and weight-loss programs (such as The 20/20 Diet and other plans) that he positions as compatible with diabetic management, though such commercial diet plans are not the same as clinical protocols and require individual medical oversight [8].

3. The “ON IT” movement and the 6 Rules: a behavioral emphasis

In 2016 he partnered with AstraZeneca to launch the “ON IT” movement aimed at helping people overcome psychological barriers to diabetes self-care and shared a set of “6 Rules to Get ON IT” focused on creating sustainable plans and accountability rather than promising biomedical cures [4] [3]. The campaign explicitly frames diabetes control as a psychological and behavioral challenge—motivating commitment, sticking to plans and reassessing goals—again underscoring management instead of reversal or cure [3].

4. Pharmaceutical ties and transparency concerns

AstraZeneca’s role in the campaign and the company’s disclosure that Dr. Phil has used its drug Bydureon since 2012 are documented; his use of branded medication and the sponsorship relationship prompted critics to question whether the “doctor” branding and pharma partnership could blur lines for audiences about clinical authority and commercial interest [5]. Reporting highlighted unease from some in the medical community about a celebrity psychologist promoting an industry-linked program and the potential for audience confusion about expertise and product messaging [5].

5. What the sources do not show: no evidence of a cure claim, and no clinical endorsement of reversal

None of the provided reporting presents Dr. Phil claiming a biomedical cure for diabetes; instead the materials consistently describe long-term management strategies and use of medication [1] [2] [4]. The sources also do not provide independent clinical data proving disease reversal attributable to his programs, nor do they substitute for individualized medical advice—separate clinical trials or guideline-level endorsements are not cited in the available material [7] [8].

6. Bottom line: public figure promoting management, not a cure

The verifiable record in these sources is clear: Dr. Phil’s public stance is that Type 2 diabetes is manageable through sustained lifestyle change, monitoring and appropriate medication; he has amplified that message through a pharma-partnered awareness campaign and personal testimony about his own treatment, including use of Bydureon, but he does not present a cure [1] [4] [5]. Readers seeking medical decisions should treat his programs as behavioral and motivational adjuncts rather than clinical cures and consult healthcare professionals for individualized treatment plans—this limitation is reflected in the reporting and campaign materials [7] [8].

Want to dive deeper?
What clinical evidence exists for reversing Type 2 diabetes through lifestyle change versus medication?
How do pharmaceutical partnerships with celebrities influence public perceptions about chronic disease treatment?
What are the current professional guidelines for managing Type 2 diabetes, and how do they compare to celebrity diet programs?