Low-Carb, High-Quality Diet Linked to Lower Mortality Rates in People with Type 2 Diabetes, Study Finds

Written By : Dr. Mahalakshmi Sivashankaran |Medically Reviewed By : Dr. Kamal Kant Kohli Published On 2023-03-31T11:15:01+05:30 | Updated On 31 March 2023 4:17 PM IST

USA: New research published in the Diabetes Care Journal suggests that low-carbohydrate diets (LCD) could lower mortality risk in individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2D).

The study aims to investigate the relationship between postdiagnosis low-carbohydrate diet (LCD) patterns and mortality in people with type 2 diabetes (T2D).

Using data from the Nurses’ Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-up Study, the team calculated an overall total LCD score (TLCDS) based on the percentage of energy as total carbohydrates. They also derived vegetable (VLCDS), animal (ALCDS), healthy (HLCDS), and unhealthy (ULCDS) LCD scores that emphasized different sources and quality of macronutrients. Multivariable-adjusted Cox models were used to examine the relationship between the LCDS and mortality.

The study found the following key findings:

The study followed 10,101 incident T2D cases, documenting 4,595 deaths during follow-up, of which 1,389 were due to cardiovascular disease (CVD) and 881 to cancer.
The team found that greater adherence to LCD patterns emphasising high-quality sources of macronutrients was significantly associated with lower total, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality.

TLCDS, VLCDS, and HLCDS increase of 10 points from prediagnosis to postdiagnosis were associated with 12%, 25%, and 25% lower total mortality, respectively.
There were no significant associations found for ALCDS or ULCDS.

Greater adherence to LCD patterns emphasising high-quality macronutrient sources was significantly associated with lower total, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality in people with T2D.

The study's results highlight the importance of dietary patterns in managing T2D and reducing mortality risk. Lead author Dr. Yang Hu stated, " Our findings suggest that not all low-carbohydrate diets are created equal and that healthier versions that emphasize foods like vegetables, nuts, and whole grains may be more effective than other diets in lowering the risk of mortality in Type 2 Diabetes patients."

Reference:

Yang Hu, Gang Liu, Edward Yu, Biqi Wang, Clemens Wittenbecher, JoAnn E. Manson, Eric B. Rimm, Liming Liang, Kathryn Rexrode, Walter C. Willett, Frank B. Hu, Qi Sun; Low-Carbohydrate Diet Scores and Mortality Among Adults With Incident Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Care 1 April 2023; 46 (4): 874–884. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc22-2310

type 2 DMtype2 diabetesDiabetes CareDiabetic dietlow-carbohydrate dietLowers mortalitylower mortality riskDiabetes Care JournalAmerican Diabetes Associationgreen vegetablesnutswhole grains

Source : Diabetes Care Journal

Dr. Mahalakshmi Sivashankaran

Dr. Mahalakshmi Sivashankaran joined Medical Dialogues as an Intern in 2023. She is a BDS graduate from Manipal College of Dental Sciences, Mangalore Batch 2022, and worked as a Junior Resident at VMMC & Safdarjung Hospital at the Department of Dental Surgery till January 2023. She has completed a Diploma in Executive Healthcare management from the Loyola Institute of Business Administration, developing skills in Healthcare Management and Administration. She covers several medical specialties including Dental, ENT, Diagnostics, Pharmacology, Neurology, and Cardiology.

Dr. Kamal Kant Kohli

Dr Kamal Kant Kohli-MBBS, DTCD- a chest specialist with more than 30 years of practice and a flair for writing clinical articles, Dr Kamal Kant Kohli joined Medical Dialogues as a Chief Editor of Medical News. Besides writing articles, as an editor, he proofreads and verifies all the medical content published on Medical Dialogues including those coming from journals, studies,medical conferences,guidelines etc. Email: drkohli@medicaldialogues.in. Contact no. 011-43720751