Low-Carb Diet May Cut Risk for Type 2 Diabetes by Almost 90 Percent, New Study Suggests

PREVIEW is an acronym of PREVention of diabetes through lifestyle Intervention and population studies in Europe and around the World.

Led by Anne Raben, Professor of Nutrition at the University of Copenhagen, the major findings of the PREVIEW program will be presented during the European Obesity Summit in Sweden.

 

The study of more than 80,000 people who gave up low-fat, high carbohydrate diets found that after ten weeks their blood-glucose levels dropped.

 

Meanwhile, some doctors have called for an overhaul of dietary guidelines following the new evidence concerning low-carbohydrate diets.

 

The study was conducted after an online revolt by patients in which 120,000 people signed up to the “low-carb” diet plan launched by diabetes.co.uk in a backlash against official advice.

 

By rejecting guidelines and eating a diet low in starchy foods but high in protein and “good” saturated fats, such as olive oil and nuts, more than 80 percent of the patients said that they had lost weight, with 10 percent shedding 9kg or more.

 

The study enrolled over 2,500 pre-diabetes people who went on a low-carb diet instead of their usual low-fat, high-carb dietary routine for eight weeks.

 

The low-carb diet consisted of only 800 calories daily, and included milkshakes and soups. The participants were also asked to exercise regularly during the study period, as findings suggested that a strict diet coupled with regular exercise can be the key to lowering the risk of Type 2 diabetes among pre-diabetes people.

 

More than 70 per cent of participants experienced improvements of blood glucose, and a fifth said they no longer needed drugs to regulate blood glucose by the end of the ten-week plan.

 

David Unwin, a GP and diabetes expert, said: “For many years I followed the advice given by PHE (Public Health England) and Diabetes UK.”

 

“It didn’t go well.”

 

“They really struggled to lose weight and their blood glucose remained high and many relied on medication.”

 

About 2.7 million people in Britain have Type 2 diabetes, a condition closely linked with obesity, and a further 750,000 are thought to have undiagnosed symptoms.

 

The results from the latest review come a week after the National Obesity Forum and the Public Health Collaboration released a report also linking carbohydrates to obesity and Type 2 diabetes. Controversially, the document argued that “eating fat does not make you fat”.

 

A spokeswoman for PHE said: “Our advice, agreed with Diabetes UK, is that people with diabetes should consume a diet consistent with the Eatwell Guide.”

 

“The evidence considered by the by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition for its Carbohydrates and Health report does not support following a low-carbohydrate diet to prevent Type 2 diabetes.”

 

In a separate development, a new report has found three quarters of older children suffering from diabetes are not receiving checks to keep their condition under control.

 

A National Pediatric Diabetes Audit of youngsters in England and Wales found just 25.4 percent of 12-year-olds were having all seven recommended checks performed. These include eye screening and foot examination, as well as measuring growth, blood pressure, kidney function and cholesterol.

 

Diabetes UK said that if children were not supported to manage their diabetes well early in life, they were more likely to be at risk of life-threatening complications.

 

“Regardless of postcode, children should receive the same high level of diabetes care. So whilst completion rates for individual care processes such as HbA1c (average blood glucose level) have improved, it is completely unacceptable that the same high standard isn't reached with the six other care processes that need to be recorded," said NPDA Clinical Lead Dr. Justin Warner.