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Thursday, 28 February 2013

New evidence for a direct sugar-to-diabetes link !


Sugar consumption and diabetes risk may be more closely linked than anyone realized.
For years, research has supported a roundabout path from excess sugar intake to type 2 diabetes. Eat too much of anything, including sugar, and the resulting weight gain raises your diabetes risk, the theory goes. There’s lots of evidence to support this pattern, but also a big hitch: A small but noteworthy proportion of people with type 2 diabetes aren’t overweight or obese. And up to 40 percent of normal-weight people show signs of the metabolic syndrome, a constellation of metabolic disturbances that predisposes people to diabetes.

From our press release on the study:

Not only was sugar availability correlated to diabetes risk, but the longer a population was exposed to excess sugar, the higher its diabetes rate after controlling for obesity and other factors. In addition, diabetes rates dropped over time when sugar availability dropped, independent of changes to consumption of other calories and physical activity or obesity rates.
 The findings do not prove that sugar causes diabetes, Basu emphasized, but do provide real-world support for the body of previous laboratory and experimental trials that suggest sugar affects the liver and pancreas in ways that other types of foods or obesity do not. “We really put the data through a wringer in order to test it out,” Basu said.

“As far as I know, this is the first paper that has had data on the relationship of sugar consumption to diabetes,” said Marion Nestle, PhD, a professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University who was not involved in the study. “This has been a source of controversy forever. It’s been very, very difficult to separate sugar from the calories it provides. This work is carefully done, it’s interesting and it deserves attention.”

More here.

Edit to add link to full study:

The Relationship of Sugar to Population-Level Diabetes Prevalence: An Econometric Analysis of Repeated Cross-Sectional Data

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0057873

Graham

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Another recommended read and very current
Jeff

TJ said...

I just got dietary advice from my employer. It comes via WebMD, where the MD stands for doctors. Here is their actual diet advice for a person with diabetes.
"Carbs: Cut Portion Size


You don’t need to cut all carbs -- such as breads, pasta, potatoes, and rice. Take a look at how much you’re eating. To keep your energy steady, you probably just need to eat a little less. Instead of your usual serving size, try having two-thirds the amount. Do this for every meal and snack.

Try cutting back your carb portions for a few weeks. You may notice that your blood sugar levels are lower, and you may even drop a few pounds.

Remember, this is advice from a doctor, not some nut on the Interwebs...

Lowcarb team member said...

"Remember, this is advice from a doctor, not some nut on the Interwebs..."

If your diabetic you don't need advice from some nut on the interweb, yes all you need is a glucose monitor.

As for not eliminating all carbs most will agree that's nigh on impossible, the secret is to limit carbs to food groups that include non starchy vegetables and fruits, and add protein and good quality fats.

Portion control faced with the temptations of bread, pasta, rice and ceareals etc. is doomed for failure.

Nuts on the interweb your right but I think you should include WebMeb in that category, as an example here's their Sample Meal Plan for Diabetes for Diabetes which includes: Breakfast 52.5 grams carbohydrate, Lunch 75 grams carbohydrate and Dinner 65 grams carbohydrate, plus two snacks of 15 grams carbohydrate = a high carb low fat diet.

Graham

TJ said...

Actually, I am a proud member of LoCarb Hezbollah , and the post was a parody. The advice was actually sent too me today and I found the irony more delicious than the breads, pasts, potatoes and rice recommended by WebMD
For diabetics .

Anonymous said...

I think this article re the 'direct sugar-to-diabetes link' and the one 'Nearly one in five New Zealanders over the age of 15 have a blood disorder that precedes Type 2 diabetes' could be linked. With all of us eating more processed foods than we ever did and the amount of hidden sugars that are in them is it any wonder diabetes is on the increase? True there are some slim Type 2's but I think the majority are not and does it matter? Eating too much sugar can not be good for health reasons. We do not need all the extra sugar added because there is enough naturally in foods.

This comment should appear on both, so apologies if you are reading it twice - you are.

Jean