Moderate low-carb diet outperforms calorie-restricted diet in Japanese study

A new study finds that a moderate reduction of carbohydrate intake led to significant improvements in HbA1c and body mass index (BMI), compared with a calorie-restricted diet, for Japanese people with type 2 diabetes.
A total of 66 people with type 2 diabetes were involved in this research. The participants chosen all had HbA1c values of 59 mmol/mol (7.5%) or over.
They were randomly assigned to follow either a calorie-restricted diet or a low-carbohydrate diet (130g of carbohydrate per day). The diets were followed over a six-month period and participants in each group received personal nutrition education for their diet at one, two, four and six months.
The results of the study showed that calorie restriction had no benefit on average for Hba1c. However, the low-carbohydrate diet participants’ HbA1c decreased by 7 mmol/mol (0.65%) and their BMI decreased by 0.58 kg/m2, which was a greater reduction than the calorie-restricted diet achieved.
The results show that whereby calorie restriction had no benefit on either BMI or blood glucose control, the low-carb diet led to significant improvements in both outcomes.
The study has been published by the Clinical Nutrition journal.
Those wishing to reduce their carbohydrate intake in an easy, approachable way can head over to Diabetes.co.uk’s Low Carb Program. The Low Carb Program advises a similar carbohydrate intake as the Japanese study (130g per day) – although you can choose a lower carbohydrate intake if you prefer- and is accompanied by easy to follow video guides each week.
Well over 80,000 people that have taken part have seen their blood glucose control improve after following the 10-week program.