If you or someone you know has type 2 diabetes, here’s some good news!
Researchers from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health have found a way to lower the risk of dying early for these people. Their secret?
A diet low in carbs but full of plant-based foods.
Why is this Important?
The team’s findings are groundbreaking. They’re the first to show how eating fewer carbs can help people who already have type 2 diabetes.
“Skipping refined and overly processed carbs is a known way to avoid getting type 2 diabetes. But our study shows for the first time how a low-carb diet can manage the disease once you have it,” said Yang Hu, the main researcher.
The study is published online and will be in the April issue of the Diabetes Care Journal.
How did the Research Go?
The researchers looked at the health records of 7,224 women from the Nurses’ Health Study and 2,877 men from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study.
All these people developed type 2 diabetes after these studies started.
The participants had to fill out questionnaires about their lifestyle and health every other year. This allowed the researchers to learn about their diets and how much they ate of different things.
These included animal proteins and fats, vegetable proteins and fats, high-quality carbs, and low-quality carbs.
What Did They Discover?
The researchers found that people eating a low-carb diet had a 24% lower risk of dying early from any cause. But the health benefits were even better for those who ate a lot of plant-based foods and high-quality carbs.
These include fruits, veggies, and whole grains. People on these diets also had lower risks of dying from heart disease and cancer.
Low-carb diets that had a lot of animal products and low-quality carbs were not linked to lower death rates.
The strongest health benefits were seen in people who also had other healthy habits. This included not smoking, exercising regularly, and drinking alcohol moderately.
What’s the Big Idea?
According to Qi Sun, a senior author and associate professor, this study highlights the importance of diet quality for managing diabetes.
So, it’s not just about eating less carbs, but also about choosing healthy, plant-based foods. This could be a game changer for people living with type 2 diabetes, helping them live longer, healthier lives.
If you care about blood sugar, please read studies about how to lower morning high blood sugar fast with no medicines, and what is the normal blood sugar for people with diabetes.
For more information about blood sugar, please see recent studies about how to prevent blood sugar spikes after meals, and results showing how the body clock affects your blood sugar.
The study was published in Diabetes Care.
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