People with type 2 diabetes who stick to a low-carb diet may be able to stop taking medication, suggests a new study.
American researchers found low-carbohydrate diets may improve the beta-cell function in patients being treated for the condition, which affects around 34 million Americans and one in 15 people worldwide.
Type 2 diabetes most often develops in people aged 45 or older, but more and more children, teens and young adults are also developing the disease.
The researchers explained that beta-cells are endocrine cells in the pancreas that produce and release insulin, the hormone that controls blood sugar levels.
People with the disease have a compromised beta-cell response to blood sugar, possibly due in part to eating too many carbs. ‘Empty carbs’ are full of sugar and white flour, which have a high glycemic index, which means they cause blood sugar and insulin levels to spike rapidly after eating.
They include refined grains that have been stripped of bran, fiber, and nutrients, such as white bread or bagels, pizza dough, chips, pasta, pastries, white rice, sweet desserts, and many breakfast cereals.
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“This study shows people with type 2 diabetes on a low-carbohydrate diet can recover their beta-cells, an outcome that cannot be achieved with medication,” said study lead author Professor Barbara Gower, of the University of Alabama.
“People with mild type 2 diabetes who reduce their carbohydrate intake may be able to discontinue medication and enjoy eating meals and snacks that are higher in protein and meet their energy needs.”
For the study published online by The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, the research team gathered data from 57 adults with type 2 diabetes, half on a low-carb diet and the other half on a high-carb diet, and examined their beta-cell function and insulin secretion at the outset and after 12 weeks. All of the participants’ meals were provided.
People on the carb-restricted diet ate 9% carbohydrates and 65% fat, while those on the high-carb diet ate 55% carbohydrates and 20% fat.
The team found that those on a low-carb, compared to a high-carb, diet saw improvements in the acute and maximal beta-cell responses that were two-fold and 22% greater, respectively.
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Black participants on a low-carb diet saw 110% greater improvements in the acute beta-cell response, while white adults had improvements in the maximal beta-cell response that were 48% greater than their respective counterparts on the high-carb diet.
Prof. Gower says further research is needed to confirm that a low-carbohydrate diet can restore beta-cell function and lead to remission in people with type 2 diabetes.
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