Your diet plays a huge part in helping you look after your wellbeing when you have diabetes, but there are so many variables in food and nutrition, it can be hard to navigate the best wellness choices. You might therefore turn to a set diet to make things easier, but knowing which of these is best for your diabetes can also be challenging. Luckily, researchers from Western Sussex Hospitals have undertaken a study to give you a helping hand.
For the study, led by Dr Olubukola Ajala, researchers looked at 20 studies from the last 10 years that compared the effect of seven popular diets on adults with type 2 diabetes. When the team analysed the results to see which one came out on top, they found that Mediterranean diets, low-carb diets, high-protein diets and low glycaemic index diets (ranking foods by how quickly their carbs turn into glucose) all lowered participants’ blood sugar.
Though the latter three were all seen to be beneficial, a Mediterranean diet, which is lean on meat and rich in healthy fats like olive oil, proved to be the most effective at promoting weight loss and lowering blood sugar among people with diabetes. Ajala explained, ‘If you look at different types of diets, these four can improve various aspects of diabetes control.’
According to the findings, which were published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, apart from the Mediterranean diet, no eating plan had much of an effect on weight. However, those who followed the Mediterranean diet for at least six months, lost an average of 4 pounds. Ajala admitted, ‘We were quite surprised by the Mediterranean diet in particular. I would have thought that low-carb would have been the best for losing weight, but Mediterranean seems to be better.’
So what’s in your new favourite diet? Eating in the Mediterranean-style means emphasising fruits, vegetables and legumes, whole grains, fish, and using olive oil and herbs in place of butter and salt. You also typically get less than eight percent of your total calories from saturated fats from red meat and dairy products.
However, Katherine Zeratsky, a registered dietician at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, warns ‘Weight loss is important, but so is nutrient quality,’ and it’s more important to take a balanced approach, including fruits and vegetables, eating moderate portions and talking to a doctor before embarking on a plan. ‘It’s not just about dumping olive oil on a salad,’ she adds.
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