Diabetic patients can benefit most by adopting a Mediterranean diet where they skip breakfast and have one large meal a day instead of smaller meals though the day.
Diet plays an important role in keeping a diabetic patient healthy. Along with the various restrictions on food, quality and timing of meals also influence the health of such patients. Researchers of a new study found that diabetic patients can benefit most by adopting a Mediterranean diet. They should skip breakfast and eat one big meal a day instead of smaller meals throughout the day, according to a press release.
For the study, researchers from Linköping University in Sweden compared the effects on blood lipids, blood glucose and different hormones after meals using three different macronutrient compositions in patients with type 2 diabetes. Twenty one patients were given three types of meals - low fat diet, low carbohydrates diet and Mediterranean diet. During the study, blood samples were collected six times each day.
The low-fat diet had a nutrient composition with about 55 percent of the total energy from carbohydrates. The low-carbohydrate diet had a relatively low content of carbohydrate; approximately 20 percent of the energy was from carbohydrates and about 50 percent of the total energy came from fat. The Mediterranean diet was composed of only a cup of black coffee for breakfast, and with all the caloric content corresponding to breakfast and lunch during the other two test days accumulated to one large lunch.
"We found that the low-carbohydrate diet increased blood glucose levels much less than the low-fat diet but that levels of triglycerides tended to be high compared to the low-fat diet," said Doctor Hans Guldbrand, who together with Professor Fredrik Nystrom was the principal investigator of the study. "It is very interesting that the Mediterranean diet, without breakfast and with a massive lunch with wine, did not induce higher blood glucose levels than the low-fat diet lunch, despite such a large single meal."
The researchers suggest skipping breakfast and having one large meal a day for diabetic patients. Guldbrand also found it fascinating that with various studies emphasizing on the importance of breakfast, the Mediterranean diet that was found to be most beneficial for diabetic patients actually emphasizes on the exclusion of this "very important" meal.
