Contents:

• Executive summary
• What is diabetes?
• Type 1 diabetes
• Type 2 diabetes
• Gestational diabetes
• Metabolic syndrome
• Pre-diabetes
• Common health complications
• Why do people become diabetic?
• Genetics
• Lifestyle and environmental factors
• Life with diabetes
• Classical approach to treatment
• Medication
• Type 1 diabetes
• Type 2 diabetes
• Diet
• How well does it work?
• The D-Diet
• Basic principles of the D-Diet
• Why and how it works
• The D-Diet nutrition basics
• Conclusion
• References

Diet

Diet

Although there are few diabetes-specific dietary recommendations from clinical practitioners, diabetics are usually recommended to consult a specialised dietician who will give them further advice based on their condition. However, most professionals are likely to prescribe a diet that limits carbohydrate and calorie intake and usually recommend cutting down on certain types of fat whilst encourage the consumption of high-fibre and low glycemic index food (Barnard, 2007; Diabetes Help, 2011; Anderson et al., 2004). This diet might temporarily improve the condition by inducing weightloss but it does not bring blood glucose levels under long-term control and, sooner or later, medication is usually needed.

People with type 1 diabetes invariably need to learn how to count carbohydrates as they base their insulin doses on the amount of carbohydrate eaten. However, recent recommendations encourage them to eat mostly foods with a low glycemic index to improve their blood glucose control (see page 20 for more information on glycemic index) and to avoid saturated fats (Barclay et al., 2010).

How well does it work?

Dieticians frequently recommend using food exchange lists, which advocate combining certain types of food at every meal, counting carbohydrates and restricting portion sizes. This kind of diet, together with medication, focuses mainly on glucose management and weight-loss but doesn’t limit animal products – the main sources of saturated fat in the diet. So, whilst it may keep blood sugar under control, it allows the body to feast on saturated fats and cholesterol and makes the kidneys work hard in coping with animal proteins.

High animal protein diets force both liver and kidneys to work harder in order to filter nitrogen products out of the bloodstream in the process of producing urine. Kidneys dilate their blood vessels to filter out protein waste – and animal protein causes greater dilation than plant protein. In addition, plant-derived proteins are lower in sulphur and demand less from the kidney’s filtration system. Moreover, fat droplets which accumulate in muscle cells remain exactly where they are and the condition gradually worsens.