How Many Carbs Should A Diabetic Eat?
Figuring out how many carbs to eat when you have diabetes can seem confusing. Meal plans created by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) provide about 45% of calories from carbs. This includes 45–60 grams per meal and 10–25 grams per snack, totaling about 135–230 grams of carbs per day. However, a growing number of experts believe people with diabetes should be eating far fewer carbs than this. In fact, many recommend fewer carbs per day than what the ADA allows per meal. This article takes a look at the research supporting low-carb diets for diabetics and provides guidance for determining optimal carb intake. Glucose, or blood sugar, is the main source of fuel for your body's cells. In people with diabetes, the body's ability to process and use blood sugar is impaired. Although there are several types of diabetes, the two most common forms are type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Type 1 Diabetes In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas is unable to produce insulin, a hormone that allows sugar from the bloodstream to enter the body's cells. Instead, insulin must be injected to ensure that sugar enters cells. Type 1 diabetes develops because of an autoimmune process in which the body attacks its own insulin-producing cells, which are called beta cells. This disease is usually diagnosed in children, but it can start at any age, even in late adulthood (1). Type 2 Diabetes Type 2 diabetes is more common, accounting for about 90% of people with diabetes. Like type 1 diabetes, it can develop in both adults and children. However, it isn't as common in children and typically occurs in people who are overweight or obese. In this form of the disease, either the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or the body's cells are resistant to insulin's effects. Therefore, too much sugar stays Continue reading >>
Sugar Does Not Cause Diabetes: Did The Film What The Health Get Itright?
Professor of Cardiology, Summa cum Laude grad, Kahn Center for Longevity and GreenSpace Cafe. www.drjoelkahn.com @drjkahn. Author The Plant Based Solution NEW Sugar Does Not Cause Diabetes: Did the Film What the Health Get itRight? The documentary What the Health is receiving a huge amount of attention and most of it is positive. Many reports of people attempting to eat better are filling social media. I discussed the film on a local TV station in Detroit after two reporters indicated that the movie had made a big impact on their diets. There have even been reports that restaurants serving healthier fare have seen an uptick in customers attributing the change to the film. I have seen this in my own plant-based restaurant and have a What The Health Happy Hour that has been very popular. Naturally, there have been critics of the movie defending their viewpoint that meat based diets are healthy, but most have rallied around a statement in the film by Neal Barnard, MD that sugar does not cause diabetes. As the answer to this question may be important to you, I have done some research and share it here but this is in NO way an endorsement to add back soda and candy bars to your diet. In a world stressed by growing obesity and its medical consequences, limiting sugar is a universal recommendation from all health experts. 1) Type 1 diabetes is not caused by sugar. All agree on this as type 1 diabetes is considered an autoimmune disease leading to destruction of the insulin producing cells in the pancreas. However, patients with type 1 diabetes can develop and reverse insulin resistance (IR) in their muscles and liver so understanding the origin of IR is important. 2) Who is Neal Barnard, MD? Dr. Barnard is a graduate of the George Washington University School of Medicine and Continue reading >>
Carbohydrates And Diabetes: What You Need To Know
Carbohydrates are our main source of energy and provide important nutrients for good health and a healthy, balanced diet. All the carbohydrates you eat and drink are broken down into glucose. The type, and amount, you consume can make a difference to your blood glucose levels and diabetes management. The two main types of carbohydrates Starchy foods: these include bread, pasta, potatoes, yams, breakfast cereals and couscous. Sugars: these can be divided into naturally occurring and added sugars: Naturally occurring: sugars found in fruits (fructose) and some dairy foods (lactose). Added sugars: found in sweets, chocolate, sugary drinks and desserts. Fibre This is another type of carbohydrate, which you can’t digest. Insoluble fibre, such as is found in wholemeal bread, brown rice and wholegrain cereals, helps keep the digestive system healthy. Soluble fibre, such as bananas, apples, carrots, potatoes, oats and barley, helps to keep your blood glucose and cholesterol under control. Make sure you eat both types of fibre regularly. Good sources of fibre include fruit and veg, nuts and seeds, oats, wholegrain breads and pulses. How much? Everyone needs some carbohydrate every day. The actual amount that you need to eat will depend on your age, activity levels and the goals you – and your family – are trying to achieve, for example trying to lose weight, improve blood glucose levels or improve sports performance. The total amount of carbohydrate eaten will have the biggest effect on your glucose levels. Insulin and carb counting If you’re living with diabetes, and take insulin, you’ll need to take that into account when eating carbs. Learn about which foods contain carbohydrates, how to estimate carbohydrate portions and how to monitor their effect on blood glucose Continue reading >>
Can Keto Cause Diabetes? Study On Mice Suggests Maybe | Everyday Health
On keto, you dramatically increase your fat intake and lower your carb intake. But a new study on mice suggests the diet may promote early signs of diabetes. The ketogenic diet, which is high in fat and low in carbohydrates, appears to increase the risk of diabetes in the short term, suggests a preliminary study on mice. Researchers found that mice fed the diet began showing signs of insulin resistance , a process that can lead to the development of type 2 diabetes , after only a few days on the diet. The ketogenic diet or the keto diet for short has been around for decades. Most popularly, doctors have assigned the keto diet to help control seizures in people with epilepsy, according to the Epilepsy Foundation . But in recent years, people have begun turning to the diet in hopes of losing weight and, in some cases, better managing type 2 diabetes. Studies show that metabolic processes are altered when people consume a diet high in fat, such as meat, and low in carbohydrates, such as bread and pasta. The body shifts into a natural metabolic state called ketosis , during which it burns fat rather than carbs for energy, according to a February 2014 review published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health . Although carb intake varies depending on which version of keto is at hand, people following the plan typically limit the intake of carbohydrates to less than 5 percent of their daily calories, notes the Chicago Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. RELATED: Whats the Difference Between Keto and Atkins? The keto diet is intriguing because it appears to run counter to the prevailing wisdom about the importance of lowering fat intake to prevent diabetes and heart disease , says a co-author of the new study, Gerald Grandl, PhD, a postdoctoral Continue reading >>
Is It True That Eating Too Many Carbohydrates Can Cause Diabetes?
Is it true that eating too many carbohydrates can cause diabetes? Is it true that eating too many carbohydrates can cause diabetes? Can eating too many carbohydrates increase your chances of developing diabetes? Carbohydrates don't cause diabetes, however eating too many calories overall (from carbohydrates or other types of food) can lead to diabetes in some people. Here's what's going on: Usually when a person eats, her or his blood glucose rises and in response insulin, a hormone secreted by the pancreas, is released. Insulin helps cells in the body to absorb glucose from the blood to use for energy or store as fat. People with diabetes either don't produce enough insulin, or their bodies don't respond to the insulin, or both. As a result, glucose remains in the blood, depriving the body's cells of energy they need, and causing damage to blood vessels, heart, kidneys, eyes, and feet. The Go Ask Alice! Q&A Diabetes mellitus has more detailed information on the disease, as does the American Diabetes Association website. Diabetes can be brought on by a number of factors, including old age, obesity, lack of exercise, or a genetic predisposition. Eating more calories than you expend, whether they're complex carbohydrates, sugars, fats, or proteins, paired with a lack of exercise and being overweight can increase some people's chances of developing diabetes. This is especially true if there is history of the disease in the family. The good news is that many people with or at-risk for developing diabetes are able to manage their condition through regular exercise and a healthy diet. Getting regular physical activity actually helps the body's cells to properly use insulin. Eating a healthy, balanced diet of fresh whole foods (e.g., grains, veggies, fruits, nuts, legumes) al Continue reading >>
High Carb Foods Proven To Reverse Insulin Resistance And Type 2 Diabetes
The idea of a low-fat diet may conjure up images of relics of the 1980s such as Richard Simmons step aerobics on video cassette, late night infomercials selling contraptions that claimed to help you get 6-pack abs quickly and easily, and grocery store shelves lined with fat-free cookies, crackers, and chips that basically just tasted like cardboard. But bear with me here. When we at Mastering Diabetes refer to a low-fat diet, we arent talking about that type of low-fat diet. Fat-free cookies and their ilk are not on the menu on our plan for optimal nutrition! There is a specific reason why we emphasize a diet which is composed primarily of high carb foods for preventing and reversing insulin resistance, and if youve never heard of this before it may just blow your mind when we tell you about it. However, we must first investigate the reason why the majority of doctors, dieticians, and patients currently hold the erroneous belief that high carb foods actually cause diabetes rather than reverse it. Were all taught in grade school about the 3 dietary macronutrients that supply our bodies with calories: carbohydrate, fat, and protein. When you eat any food or beverage that contains carbohydrate, your blood glucose rises. With the exception of meat, poultry, fish, eggs, butter, and oil, all foods contain carbohydrates. In people without diabetes, blood glucose is typically somewhere between 7099 mg/dL before a meal. After a meal containing a large amount of carbohydrates, blood glucose may rise as high as 100 - 160 mg/dL. With the exception of some highly processed foods such as oil, sweeteners, juices, and sugar sweetened beverages, all foods contain protein. However, protein is found in a much more concentrated amount in foods that dont contain any carbohydrates: meat, po Continue reading >>
Low Carb Vs. High Carb - My Surprising 24-day Diabetes Diet Battle
Twitter summary: What I learned from doubling my carb intake: the same average blood sugar, but four times as much hypoglycemia, more work, stress, & danger. As a teenager, I ate a high carb diet that included lots of Goldfish crackers, white sandwich bread, pasta, and white potatoes. It was tasty, but it put my blood sugars on a wild roller coaster every single day. Things turned around in college when I learned about nutrition, got on CGM, and spent time with health conscious friends. I soon realized that eating less than 30 grams of carbs at one time was a complete gamechanger. I’ve stuck with that approach ever since. But is this lower carb method actually better for my blood sugars, or have I just been fooling myself? To find out, I took on a somewhat terrifying self-tracking experiment: 12 days of my usual, lower-carb diet, which averaged 146 grams of carbs per day (21% of daily calories). My carbs were primarily from nuts, seeds, vegetables, and a bit of fruit. 12 days of a higher-carb, high whole-grain diet, which averaged 313 grams of carbs per day (43% of my daily calories). My sources of carbs were NOT junk food: plain oatmeal, whole wheat bread, quinoa, wild rice, and fruit. Neither of these was unrealistic. My lower-carb diet was nowhere near Atkins level (20 grams per day), and the higher-carb diet was consistent with the “average” 45% carb diet in people with diabetes (according to ADA). Even though this was a one-person (n=1) experiment, I wanted to be as scientific and fair as possible: eating whole, unprocessed foods in both periods; counting and tracking every single gram of carbohydrate (LoseIt! app); wearing CGM 24/7 and downloading the glucose data to document what happened (Dexcom G5 and Clarity); taking insulin before meals (5-15 minutes pr Continue reading >>
Very-low-carb Diet Can Safely Curb Blood Sugar In Type 1 Diabetes, Study Suggests
More On: carbohydrates , David Ludwig , diabetes , Division of Endocrinology , low-glycemic diet , type 1 diabetes David Ludwig, MD, PhD , an endocrinologist at Boston Childrens Hospital, has written popular books espousing a low-glycemic, low-carbohydrate diet for weight control. He has argued that high-glycemic diets are contributing to the epidemic of type 2 diabetes. But he hadnt given much thought to carbohydrate restriction for type 1 diabetes until 2016. At a conference, Ludwig met a surgeon with type 1 diabetes who maintains normal hemoglobin A1c levels (indicating high blood sugar control) on a very-low-carbohydrate diet.This surprised and impressed him: he had never seen any patient with type 1 diabetes able to completely normalize their hemoglobin A1cs. Moreover, most diabetes experts discourage very-low-carb diets, believing they posea risk for hypoglycemia, or a dangerous drop in blood sugar. The surgeon told Ludwig about TypeOneGrit , a Facebook community of children and adults with type 1 diabetes who follow a very-low-carbohydrate diet espoused by the book Dr. Bernsteins Diabetes Solution. Ludwig decided to conduct an observational study of this community, together with Boston Childrens endocrinologist Belinda Lennerz, MD, PhD . Book author Richard Bernstein, MD, is a co-author. Ludwig and Lennerz analyzed survey responses from 316 community members. For 138 members, they were able to corroborate survey responses with health care providers or through a review of medical records. Its time to refocus on the medicinal power of diet, says Ludwig. As reported today in Pediatrics , self-reported hemoglobin A1c values averaged in the normal range, at 5.67 percent. (The target is below 7 percent; prevailing levels average 8.2 percent.) Some survey respondents e Continue reading >>
Is Low-carb Eating Really Better For Blood Sugar?
A review of popular low-carbohydrate diets finds that while restricting carbs can reduce blood sugar in the short run, evidence in support of long-term benefits is lacking. While very low carbohydrate diets (LCD) promise to cut blood sugars, a review of popular LCDs finds that while very low-carb eating can reduce blood sugar in the short run, little evidence exists to show long-term benefits. The study, published online in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, reports that while LCDs may be “slightly better than low fat diets for weight and triglycerides management” they are “not superior for the management of blood glucose, blood pressure, or cholesterol levels.” However, researchers note that physicians should be aware that “available evidence for LCDs is limited because of variable definitions, lack of long-term studies, and lack of patient adherence.” Diets considered ranged from very low carb—less than 20 to 60 grams per day—to less restrictive diets that averaged about 130 grams per day. The American Diabetes Association says diets should be tailored to individual needs, but recommends starting at 45-60 grams of carbohydrates per meal. “Patients can likely follow a version of the low carbohydrate diet for longer than the studies suggest, but we don’t know the health effects of a very low carbohydrate ketogenic diet of less than 20 grams of carbs per day,” says Heather Fields, MD, an author of the study and a doctor of integrative medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona. “With so few people adhering to a truly ketogenic diet long term [more than a year], we will likely never be able to study the health effects in a meaningful way.” Dr. Fields finds that if type 2 patients have not had success with a plant-based, who Continue reading >>
Low-carb Diets Linked With Type 2 Diabetes
Fad diets are clearly not all they are cracked up to be. Most are simply made up of theories that seldom get put to the test other than with the anecdotal evidence of users who swear by them. When put to the test of time, however, they fail those who use them and when carefully scrutinized by scientists and researchers they collapse under the weight of the evidence. Low-Carb diets are the prototype for this. They’ve been around for well over 100 years in one form or another, with the most popular version being marketed by Dr. Atkins over the last 40 years. People do lose weight, but not for the reasons put forth by those who champion such plans. The weight loss comes partly from eating fewer calories and partly because in this day and age, eliminating carbohydrates means eliminating calorie dense, highly processed foods (most of which contain high fructose corn syrup (HFCS)). I can’t imagine why anyone would follow a diet — any diet — that takes entire food groups away from you. There’s no reason to give up great foods like pasta, potatoes, beans and corn to lose weight or to be healthier. Giving up these foods is one of the main reasons that the Atkins diet is not a diet that can be sustained for the long term. Further, such diets seldom prepare people for eating real food: when they go off the diet they usually gain the weight back, and then some. There’s been concern for years about the long term health risks of such diets. We’ve seen that those eating higher protein diets that are also high in saturated fat were more likely to develop heart disease than those whose higher protein diet came from vegetable protein sources. Interestingly, those women eating a strict low-carbohydrate diet weighed more than those eating a more normal diet.(1) Their Body Mas Continue reading >>
Can Eating Too Much Sugar Cause Type 2 Diabetes?
Because type 2 diabetes is linked to high levels of sugar in the blood, it may seem logical to assume that eating too much sugar is the cause of the disease. But of course, it’s not that simple. “This has been around for years, this idea that eating too much sugar causes diabetes — but the truth is, type 2 diabetes is a multifactorial disease with many different types of causes,” says Lynn Grieger, RDN, CDE, a nutrition coach in Prescott, Arizona, and a medical reviewer for Everyday Health. “Type 2 diabetes is really complex.” That said, some research does suggest that eating too many sweetened foods can affect type 2 diabetes risk, and with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimating that 30.3 million Americans have the disease — and that millions of more individuals are projected to develop it, too — understanding all the risk factors for the disease, including sugar consumption, is essential to help reverse the diabetes epidemic. The Sugar and Type 2 Diabetes Story: Not So Sweet After the suspicion that sugar was the cause of diabetes, the scientific community pointed its finger at carbohydrates. That makes sense, notes Grieger, explaining that simple and complex carbohydrates are both metabolized as sugar, leading blood sugar levels to fluctuate. Yet carbs are processed differently in the body based on their type: While simple carbs are digested and metabolized quickly, complex carbs take longer to go through this system, resulting in more stable blood sugar. “It comes down to their chemical forms: A simple carbohydrate has a simpler chemical makeup, so it doesn’t take as much for it to be digested, whereas the complex ones take a little longer,” Grieger explains. Sources of complex carbohydrates include whole-wheat bread an Continue reading >>
Are Excess Carbohydrates The Main Link To Diabetes & Its Complications In Asians?
Indian J Med Res. 2018 Nov;148(5):531-538. doi: 10.4103/ijmr.IJMR_1698_18. Are excess carbohydrates the main link to diabetes & its complications in Asians? Department of Diabetology, Dr Mohan's Diabetes Specialities Centre & Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, Chennai, India. Department of Foods Nutrition & Dietetics Research, Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, Chennai, India. Dietary carbohydrates form the major source of energy in Asian diets. The carbohydrate quantity and quality play a vital function in the prevention and management of diabetes. High glycaemic index foods elicit higher glycaemic and insulinaemic responses and promote insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes (T2D) through beta-cell exhaustion. This article reviews the evidence associating dietary carbohydrates to the prevalence and incidence of T2D and metabolic syndrome (MS) in control of diabetes and their role in the complications of diabetes. Cross-sectional and longitudinal studies show that higher carbohydrate diets are linked to higher prevalence and incidence of T2D. However, the association seems to be stronger in Asian-Indians consuming diets high in carbohydrates and more marked on a background of obesity. There is also evidence for high carbohydrate diets and risk for MS and cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, the quality of carbohydrates is also equally important. Complex carbohydrates such as brown rice, whole wheat bread, legumes, pulses and green leafy vegetables are good carbs. Conversely, highly polished rice or refined wheat, sugar, glucose, highly processed foods such as cookies and pastries, fruit juice and sweetened beverages and fried potatoes or French fries are obviously 'bad' carbs. Ultimately, it is all a matter of balance and moderation in diet. For Indians who curre Continue reading >>
Why I Recommend A High-carb Diet For My Patients With Diabetes
Why I Recommend a High-Carb Diet for My Patients with Diabetes Michelle McMacken, MD, is a board-certified internal medicine physician and an assistant professor of medicine at NYU School of Medicine. An honors graduate of Yale University and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, she has more than ten years of experience practicing primary care,directing a medical weight-loss program, and teaching doctors-in-training at Bellevue Hospital Center in NYC. An enthusiastic supporter of plant-based nutrition, she is committed to educating patients, medical students, and doctors about the power of healthy eating and lifestyle modification. From a Failing Heart and Weight Struggles to Healthy and Active: A Couples Plant-Based Journey I have many patients with type 2 diabetes and prediabetes in my internal medicine practice. When I ask what foods they think they should limit, the majority answer carbs. To their surprise, I tell them that I actually recommend a high-carb dietone based in whole- or minimally processed plant foods. Heres why: People eating high-carb, high-fiber diets enjoy exceptional protection from type 2 diabetes. The Adventist Health Study 2 showed that among nearly 61,000 people, veganswhose diets are typically high in carbohydrate-rich foodshad half the rate of diabetes compared to non-vegetarians, even after accounting for differences in body weight. It is notable that the non-vegetarians in this study ate red meat and poultry relatively infrequently, suggesting that even small increases in meat consumption disproportionately increase the risk of type 2 diabetes. Other studies from the Adventist group show similar trends. Among 41,387 Adventists followed for two years, vegans had a 62 percent lower risk of developing diabetes compared to o Continue reading >>
Reversing Diabetes | Carbs That Are Good For You
Do you have type 2 diabetes? Have you been told you have to give up juicy watermelon or sweet grapes? What if we told you those foods really aren’t taboo? Learn how participants at the Pritikin Longevity Center have success with their blood sugars… even while enjoying fruit! For people who need to watch their blood sugar, a high-carbohydrate diet is actually good for you. What’s critical is the type of carbohydrate. Certainly, if you’re eating refined carbs like white bread and sugary desserts, blood sugar levels can shoot up. But if the bulk of your diet is fiber-rich, unprocessed carbohydrates like vegetables, whole fruit, whole grains, and beans, you may be able to normalize blood sugar levels and even reverse the diagnosis of pre-diabetes and diabetes, scientists are now discovering. An investigation conducted by UCLA researchers followed diabetic men at the Pritikin Longevity Center for three weeks. It reported that the Pritikin Eating Plan, high in whole, fiber-filled carbohydrates, plus daily exercise, not only helped the men lose weight and improve cholesterol levels, it also decreased blood sugar levels by 20% and insulin levels by 30%.1 Reversing Diabetes What’s more, by the end of their three-week program, the majority of the men had controlled their fasting blood glucose, or blood sugar, so well that “they were no longer classified as diabetic,” wrote lead investigators Drs. James Barnard and Christian Roberts of UCLA. Some of the men left Pritikin completely free of their diabetic medications, and others had their medication dosages reduced. In addition to normalizing blood sugar and reducing classic heart disease risk factors like high cholesterol and high blood pressure, the Pritikin Program of diet and exercise also substantially improved r Continue reading >>
Low-carb Vs. High-carb Which Is The Best Diet For Type 2 Diabetics?
Low-carb vs. high-carb which is the best diet for type 2 diabetics? DietDoc discusses a recent study of nine meta-analyses on the effects of low-carbohydrate diets on type 2 diabetes. As I mentioned in a previous article , many people would summarise the current biggest issues in the field of nutrition as: Obesity , Banting and Carbs ! A study entitled A critical review of meta-analyses of low-carbohydrate diets in people with type 2 diabetes was recently published in a leading diabetes journal, Diabetic Medicine . Because November is Diabetes Awareness Month, the results of this study may shed light on the type of diets that would be of the greatest benefit to diabetics. The abovementioned study assessed the results from all the available meta-analyses on low carbohydrate diets in people with diabetes. A meta-analysis is simply the process of combining various studies into one to assess the overall outcome. Hamish Van Wyk, who is a Registered Dietitian and Diabetes Educator at the Department of Health in Port Elizabeth, and his colleagues went one step further and combined nine meta-analyses to study the effects of low-carbohydrate diets on type 2 diabetes. The authors set very strict criteria for the studies included in their analysis: - Only randomised controlled studies were used. This means that a control group is used to monitor if the effect of the treatment is due to the treatment or if it is caused by some other factor. The allocation of test subjects to either the treatment group or the control group is done randomly to increase the probability that any effects that occur can be attributed to the treatment and not to chance alone. - The studies had to continue for at least 4 weeks or longer to determine if the subjects were able to stick to their diets or not Continue reading >>
