Nutrition & Metabolism has just published a study, Control of blood glucose in type 2 diabetes without weight loss by modification of diet composition, that is interesting if you, like me, suspect that your weight and/or your overeating is related to how much “white stuff” you eat.

Now this study looks at the use of diet as a way of managing blood glucose in Type 2 diabetics. And if you read the full study, you’ll note that the authors see difference in responses to diet between “normal subjects” and those with Type 2 diabetes. That said, I agree with Jimmy Moore (thanks for the pointer) that the study findings are encouraging for those who choose a low or managed carb approach for other reasons, such as weight loss and/or overeating.

One point that the authors make in the background/review section is something I hadn’t thought about before, and that’s the question of sugar/starch composition. They write (emphasis mine):

Based on a series of studies, our research group has determined that it is the glucose content of foods from the above carbohydrate sources that is largely responsible for raising blood glucose after meals. Consequently, to reduce the glucose content of the diet, the type of carbohydrate in the foods in the diet should be considered, in addition to the total carbohydrate content.

What they also point out, which I hadn’t grokked before, is that starches may actually be worse for you than sugar!

Sugars are generally half glucose and either half fructose (fruits, veggies, table sugar) or half lactose (milk products). Starches on the other hand, are “found in cereals, potatoes, rice and pasta,” and (again, emphasis mine):

are polymers of hundreds to thousands of glucose molecules attached to each other forming a large spherical structure. Thus, starch is 100% glucose.

Very interesting!

Now of course, this isn’t a license to chow down on sugar. But it does go to show why sitting down to a restaurant-sized portion of pasta (2-3 cups) may be really, really bad idea, even if you doctor it up with lean protein and healthy veggies!

Now before you think I’m going to say this means that low-carb is the answer, check out what the authors had to say in the summary of their study:

We are completing a study in which the LoBAG20 diet has been modified by increasing the carbohydrate content to 30% from 20% with a corresponding decrease in fat. We refer to this as a LoBAG30 diet. This was done because the diet is likely to be acceptable to a greater number of people. The results to date appear similar to those obtained when the subjects received the LoBAG20 diet.

The authors don’t say how many calories their subjects are consuming, but if you assume 2000 calories, that works out to be 150 grams of carbs per day (I’m actually doing about 150-200 grams of carbs and 1600-1800 cals per day).

This, to me, is exciting, as I believe that many people can benefit from managing their carbs rather than drastically reducing them. I also suspect that finding a way to get people off “white stuff” without making them endure a difficult induction period is also possible. And this study, to me, suggests that getting people to reduce carbs and go for more whole carbs (rather than refined, processed carbs) may give you the best of both worlds and a much greater rate of compliance.

For me, an approach that is based on moderating carbs and maximing nutrients has been life-changing!