A high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet for five weeks can lead to a marked reduction in blood sugar levels in patients with untreated type 2 diabetes. This could potentially be a way for patients with type 2 diabetes to control their blood sugar (glucose) without drugs. Researchers from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, USA, studied eight men with type 2 diabetes. For five weeks, the subjects consumed a diet with a carbohydrate to protein to fat ratio of either 20:30:50 (test diet) or 55:15:30 (comparison diet). After a break of five weeks, the subjects then switched to the other diet for five weeks. At the end of it, it was found that the average 24-hour glucose level and haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c, glycosylated haemoglobin – a test for assessing blood sugar control in diabetes) percentages were lower after the test diet than after the control diet. HbA1c levels fell at the end of the test-diet phase. Another change associated with the test diet included decreased insulin levels. However, no changes in cholesterol levels were observed. Overall, the study findings suggest that a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet can reduce 24-hour glucose concentrations in people with type 2 diabetes. However, further studies are needed to evaluate the long-term effects of such a diet.
Diabetes,
September 2004