Changing the balance of carbohydrates in your meals may help reduce your insulin resistance, according to a new study.
The Study Compared Consumption of Carbohydrates and Insulin Response:
Researchers at the University of Michigan recruited 32 healthy postmenopausal women for the research. The women were randomly assigned to one of four groups: meals with 30 or 60 percent carbohydrates, with moderate-intensity exercise or no exercise first. The investigators measured blood sugar and insulin levels following each meal of the day.
All the meals had the same caloric content. Dietary guidelines currently recommend that Americans get 45 to 60 percent of their calories from carbs.
Lower-Carb Meals Won the Day:
The women eating meals low in carbohydrates had a drop in insulin resistance by the end of the day, after all three meals had been eaten. In contrast, those whose meals were high in carbohydrates had sustained insulin resistance after the third meal. Insulin resistance can predispose people to prediabetes, diabetes and even heart disease.
The research looked only at the response during a single day. Previous studies have shown that high-carb meals over a week or two weeks increase insulin resistance and raise insulin secretion and blood sugar levels.
Being able to reverse insulin resistance within a single day offers a possible dietary treatment for this metabolic disturbance, even if eaters do need to take it one day at a time.
Exercise Did Not Lower Insulin Resistance:
In a surprising development, the women who exercised before eating did not lower their insulin resistance. In fact, exercising before eating raised blood sugar levels following the evening meal. This is not the desired effect. The researchers will be conducting further research to see whether exercise after eating instead of before meals will produce better results.
