Death From Type 2 Diabetes Prevented By This Food

Type 2 diabetes is a potentially deadly disease, with most patients dying of cardiovascular events like heart attacks and strokes.

To help to prevent this outcome, a study has just appeared in Diabetes Care that reveals the best dietary advice for type 2 diabetes.

The research, led by scientists from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, examined the health records of 7,224 women from the Nurses’ Health Study and 2,877 men from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, all of whom developed type 2 diabetes during the studies.

The participants completed questionnaires every two years, providing information about their lifestyles and medical histories.

By analyzing the data, the researchers were able to evaluate the types of foods the participants consumed and score their diets based on their consumption of animal protein, vegetable protein, and high-quality versus low-quality carbohydrates.

They also ranked the diets according to their percentage of energy consumed as carbohydrates.

There were 10,101 diabetes cases during the follow-up period, including 4,595 deaths. Of these, 1,389 died of cardiovascular disease and 881 of cancer.

With all this information at hand, the researchers established the following facts:

1. Overall, every 10-point increment on the low-carb diet scale carried a 13% lower risk of death, 24% for very low-carb diets, and 22% for high-quality low-carb diets.

2. Very low-carb diets and high-quality low-carb diets were associated with lower CVD and cancer deaths.

3. Low-carb diets high in animal products and low-quality carb diets did not reduce the risk of death.

These findings confirm that the healthiest diet for diabetics is one with relatively low carbohydrates consumed in the form of plants.

In contrast, the popular ketogenic or Atkins diet is low-carb but packed with animal proteins, so that should be avoided.

A low-carb plant-based diet emphasizes whole, nutrient-dense foods that are low in carbs. It limits sugar, all grains, and starchy vegetables, such as potatoes and squashes, and completely rules out refined carbs, such as white bread and cakes.

There is an even more effective way to reverse type 2 diabetes and avoid its complications—a way that considers the real underlying factor. You can learn three steps to reversing type 2 diabetes here…