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Can You Improve Blood Sugar Control by Cutting Carbs?

Research shows that cutting carbs can reduce fluctuations in blood glucose and lower the amount of medication people with diabetes need.

A century ago, before insulin was discovered in 1921, the way people with diabetes controlled their blood sugar was by not eating carbohydrate-rich foods. Could cutting carbs help improve your blood sugar control today?

Cutting Carbs Reduced Insulin Requirements:

Q. I’ve had type 1 diabetes for 36 years, and for the past five years I have cut back on carbs and processed foods. I had struggled for years trying to keep my blood sugar from going to extremes despite being on an insulin pump or multiple daily injections.

When I went low-carb (25 grams or less per meal), it made such a difference in my control. I had spoken with my former endocrinologist about going low-carb, but she discouraged it. When I decided to try this anyway, she was absolutely furious with me and told me I was going to get sick. That was the last time I saw her.

My HbA1c measurements are lower and my blood sugars are more controlled than they have ever been. I’ve not been sick, and I use less insulin. Cutting carbs may not work for everyone, but it has certainly been good for me.

Research on Cutting Carbs in Type 1 Diabetes:

A. A survey published in the journal Pediatrics (May, 2018) found that children and adults with type 1 diabetes following a very low-carb diet had exceptionally good blood sugar control.  This flies in the face of conventional dietary recommendations.

People with Type 2 Diabetes Also Benefit from Cutting Carbs:

Although type 1 and type 2 diabetes have different causes, it seems that the same low-carbohydrate diet benefit both. Researchers compared low- and high-carbohydrate diets for managing type 2 diabetes (Tay et al, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Oct. 2015). People who followed a low-carb diet (<50 g/day) for a year had more stable blood glucose and better blood lipids than those on a high-carb diet. They also needed fewer diabetes medicines. Glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), a measure of blood sugar over several weeks, improved on both diets.

A two-year study compared an energy-restricted low-carb diet high in unsaturated fat and low in saturated fat to a high-carb low-fat diet for people with type 2 diabetes (Tay et al, Diabetes, Obesity & Metabolism, April 2018). Here too, the group following the low-carb diet reduced the medicine they needed, stabilized their blood sugar and lowered their blood lipids more than the group on the high-carb diet.

How Can You Start Cutting Carbs?

You can learn more about how to follow a low-carbohydrate diet in our book, Quick & Handy Home Remedies. In it you will learn which foods to avoid and which should be staples in such an eating plan.

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About the Author
Terry Graedon, PhD, is a medical anthropologist and co-host of The People’s Pharmacy radio show, co-author of The People’s Pharmacy syndicated newspaper columns and numerous books, and co-founder of The People’s Pharmacy website. Terry taught in the Duke University School of Nursing and was an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology. She is a Fellow of the Society of Applied Anthropology. Terry is one of the country's leading authorities on the science behind folk remedies..
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