Posted on 12/16/2008 6:22:00 PM PST by neverdem
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – For people who have type 2 diabetes, a low-glycemic index diet is significantly better than a high-fiber diet for keeping blood glucose levels down, researchers report
Glycemic index, or GI, refers to how rapidly a food causes blood sugar to rise. High-GI foods, like white bread and potatoes, tend to spur a quick surge in blood sugar, while low-GI foods, such as lentils, soybeans, yogurt and many high-fiber grains, produce a more gradual increase in blood sugar.
The current study in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association involved 210 individuals with type 2 diabetes treated with anti-diabetes medications who were randomly allocated to go on to either a low-GI diet or a high-fiber diet for 6 months. The main outcome measured was the change in (hemoglobin)A1C in the blood, which reflects glucose levels over the long term.
(Hemoglobin)A1C fell 0.50 percent on the low-GI diet compared with only 0.18 percent on the high-fiber diet, Dr. David J. A. Jenkins, from the University of Toronto, and co-researchers report.
Furthermore, levels of HDL ("good") cholesterol levels rose with the low-GI diet but they fell with the high-fiber diet...
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
EXERCISE is very important. You can lower your test results drastically
and you may be able to be a controlled diabetic, if you’re not already... no insulin but still do the tests.
Walk every day at least 30-45 min. Stair-stepper, recumbent bike, swimming.
The brisker the better if you can. Talk to your doctor about exercise. It is very important.
Along with a strict diet. Diabetic diets don’t have to be bad.
Good luck and Good reading!
"Low glycemic" and "low carb" diets share the same conclusion in that it is CARBS, not FAT, that contribute to obesity and diabetes.
Enjoy bacon and eggs for breakfast. Skip the white toast, jelly, corn flakes, skim milk, and orange juice. High fiber cereals (like oatmeal) and breads are only O.K. once you have got your weight and blood sugars under control.
I also use Splenda, mostly for cooking. I use it in baking because the sugar (or substitute) is needed for texture as well as flavor.
Splenda, if I remember correctly, is sugar that is chemically altered so it is still sweet, but is not digested. Stevia is a herb, not a sugar.
Thanks.
Type II since June 2005 (but I felt “off” since since March 2005), originally tested @ 10.6 A1c, went immediately on the GI diet and so far that’s been it - no meds, blood sugar has so far been below 7.0 A1c.
Now the docs never told me to go on the GI diet - they simply said loss some weight and we’ll test you in a few weeks.
My father had died in March (just when I started to feel sluggish) after being Type II for 30+ years (fourth generation Type II (Scots-Irish)for me). My mother gave me a book called “The GI Diet” by Rick Gallop. And then I started walking - a LOT! 1-2 miles nightly and then about 10 miles each weekend up in the hills.
If you can get a copy of the book it will tell you what foods to eat and what foods not to eat. It is similiar to the South Beach diet.
The doc was amazed on my return - I really think they wanted to me on something!
The only way to tell is to test. I am a type 2 and I test at least 5 times a day.
Fasting - just before breakfast
2 hours after breakfast
Before dinner
2 hours after dinner
Bedtime
My goals are fasting and before meals 80 - 120. 2 hours after a meal under 140. I record my meals and how they test out. If a 2 hour test is over 180, that meal is avoided. If a 2 hour test is between 140 and 180, I modify the meal and try it again at a later date. Under 140, it is a keeper.
Using those test goals my last 3 A1c tests came back at 6.1. Not bad, my A1c target is 6.0. My Dr. is happy as long as the A1c is under 7.0. I have found that if the A1c is in the between 5 and 6 it is too easy to go low. Hypos are NOT fun!
Try changing your mindset. Don't think SUGAR, think CARBS. Because carbs = sugar, but carbs are metabolized a lot slower than table sugar. This is the core thinking of the Glycemic Index that this thread started out on. The key thing to remember is that diabetes effects everyone differently. You have to work at finding what works and what dosen't work for you.
mark
Not sure about the digested part, but yes it's chemically altered replacing the various OH bonds with Cl. The chemical map looks almost the same as sugar (same bonds, just different atoms), unlike other artificial sweeteners which look completely different.
My doctor prescribed a glucose meter for me 3 1/2 years ago, after I had complained of numbness and tingling in my feet for at least three years. But he always saw patients in the afternoon, and always had me fasting since the previous night, so my glucose was always normal. But this time he also found that my A1c was elevated.
Within a couple of days, my new meter was telling me that my fondness for Chinese food over a large plate of rice was now off limits. Four hours after that signal meal, my glucose was 239 - and when I returned to the Dr. two weeks later with my readings, he handed me a “diabetic diet” pamphlet.
I read through it and found it unappealing, so I also started looking at Atkins, South Beach, Glycemic, and other carb-control regimens. Also, I discovered that the owner of that Chinese restaurant was diabetic, and that he could prepare some dishes that would not sugar-bomb me. My favorite was his low-carb spicy noodle soup, a full meal that left my glucose at 130 two hours later.
I changed from sweetened Cheerios to plain, and then to generic bran flakes with sweetener for breakfast. I have not had another non-diet soda since then. I don’t eat sweets at all - no candy, cake, pie, or cookies. I severely limit bread and pasta, and eat almost no potatoes or rice. I do eat several fruits daily - a banana, 1-3 apples, and a pear, peach, plum, or orange. I eat a LOT of nuts - mostly peanuts - but no peanut butter. I eat lots of meats - with fat - and non-starchy vegetables.
My Aic has been “normal” for two years now, but my glucose had been drifting upward, averaging about 110. But since August 1, I have been on a treadmill 5-6 days every week. I started much slower, but now I do 3 miles in 45 minutes (3.8-4.5 mph) at 9% slope, with the last 5 min at 15%. I weighed 225 when I started, 199 now. And my glucose average for the past 5, 10, and 30 days is down to 95.
I wish I could say that the neuropathy in both my feet was improving, but it is just the same. And since I started exercising, my right hip is the first to complain about the weather. But I have reduced one of my BP meds, and I might try reducing my diuretic as well because I don’t seem to have as much ankle swelling. I take pills for GERD, cholesterol management, my hip, prostate, and colon, but nothing at all for diabetes. With all that, I am a fairly healthy 69.
Thanks for writing your comments.
Thanks for the ping
I sound like a broken record, but just lowering blood sugar numbers may not stop the underlying damage done by having all that insulin released into the body after eating carbs. Yes, low glycemic carbs will do the damage more slowly, but a carb is still a carb.
As for the medicines for diabetes...
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=3232247&page=1
ping
Are you aware that your brain only gets its energy from glucose? Thanks for the link.
I despise testing and found I can actually tell if I'm elevated (by testing after my nueropathy tells me I'm high glucose) and found the "natural" warning to be patent!
all they had to do was read one of atkins’ books and they would have known this about 30 years ago.
No experience with them.
I’m Type II. I have found that even a 10-minute leisurely stroll after a meal will lower my blood sugar readings. The longer, brisker the better but even just moving around makes a big difference for me.
You are exactly right. Medication affects either how much sugar the liver puts into the bloodstream or how effective the body’s insulin is. But exercise causes the large body muscles to directly absorb sugar from the bloodstream. With the same diet, the difference in my glucose level is night and day on days when I exercise and when I do not. A three-mile walk is my goal but even less works wonders. And this time of year diet is especially challenging!
My diabetic husband uses it. Likes it better than any of the other sugar substitutes. It’s very sweet, so only use a very little.
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