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THURSDAY, Jan. 14, 2021 (HealthDay News) – Type 2 diabetes patients who follow low-carbohydrate (LCD) diets for six months may experience higher rates of remission from diabetes, according to a review published online Jan. 13 in The BMJ.
Joshua Z. Goldenberg, Ph.D., of Texas A&M University in College Station, and colleagues conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to examine the efficacy and safety of LCDs and very LCDs (VLCDs) for people with Type 2 diabetes. Data from 23 trials with 1357 participants were included.
The researchers found that compared to control diets, at six months, LCDs achieved higher rates of diabetes remission (defined as hemoglobin A1c [HbA1c] <6.5 percent; 57 versus 31 percent; risk difference, 0.32). When a definition of remission of HbA1c <6.5 percent without medication was used, smaller and non-significant effect sizes were observed. Data on remission at 12 months were sparse, ranging from a small effect to a trivial increased risk of diabetes. At six months, there were large clinically important improvements in weight loss, triglycerides, and insulin sensitivity, which decreased at 12 months. The VLCDs seemed less effective than the less restrictive LCDs; this effect is explained by adherence to diet. No significant differences were observed in quality of life at six months; however, at 12 months there was a clinically important but not statistically significant worsening.
“Clinicians could consider short-term LCDs for type 2 diabetes management, while actively monitoring and adjusting diabetes medication as needed,” the authors write.
One author disclosed financial ties to Texas A&M AgriLife Research.
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