There is some confusion around the most appropriate diet for the diabetic
with no single regime being proven to help the condition.

There is conflicting dietary advice given almost every day from so called
experts in their fields. This is made worse by the popular press selectively
reporting snippets from medical papers that often has the effect of skewing
the misinterpreting the original message.

Undoubtedly, refined white sugar and products containing this substance are
not going to be helpful for the diabetic simply because of the almost immediate
absorption of this substance into the blood as glucose. But there is more to
a diet suitable for diabetics than just sugar considerations.

There have been claims of type 2 diabetes being cured by diet alone although
the diabetic associations are adamant that no cure for diabetes exists.

Christian Roberts of the University of California undertook research into
diet and diabetes and found that in 50% of those studied, who followed a diet
based on pritkin principles, the type 2 diabetes symptoms were reversed.

The regime for this study involved participants exercising for one hour every
day and following a diet that was based on vegetables and whole grains with
a little animal protein.

Another small study in the USA concluded that high fibre diets assisted in
keeping blood glucose levels low.

There is controversy over the dietary recommendations being offered by the
diabetic associations both in the UK and the USA . Their current advice is
for diabetics to follow a low fat, carbohydrate based diet despite what appears
to be fairly compelling evidence to the contrary.

The problem everyone faces in deciphering what represents a safe diet, whether
they are diabetic or not, is in knowing which research to trust. Just about
every piece of research undertaken has an agenda to be fulfilled. It may be
that the research is being sponsored by a drug company to prove the benefits
of a particular drug treatment; it may be that the research is undertaken by
someone who is simply setting out to prove a pet theory. There is too little
research that is truly independent and undertaken without prejudice to the
outcome.

It has been suggested, and some would say proven, that an Atkins type diet
high in fat and protein and low in carbohydrate is the most suitable for a
diabetic and it would certainly seem logical that restricting (particularly
refined) carbohydrates would help to prevent elevated glucose levels in the
blood stream.

There is a link between insulin, glucose and cholesterol – particularly
what is termed “bad cholesterol” and proponents of the Atkins diet
claim that cholesterol levels are not adversely affected by this diet regime.
Of course there are contrary views.

It is important for diabetics to realise that everyone has an individual
metabolism and physiology. What may be a healthy diet for one person could
be life threatening for another. A diet based around healthy protein – organic
white meat and fish; natural carbohydrates – vegetables, salads and fruit;
and monounsaturated fat supplemented by the essential fatty acids is a good
starting point. Once this is established there is no reason why, under controlled
conditions, individuals should not try introducing whole grains to see what
effect they have on their glucose levels. In this way diabetics can assess
for themselves what represents a healthy, life saving diet.