Is Diet a Viable Natural Diabetes Treatment?

A recent study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine examined the effects of a Mediterranean diet versus a low-fat diet in 215 overweight patients newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Half of the group was instructed to follow the Mediterranean diet (less than 50 percent of calories from carbohydrates) and the other half went the low-fat route (less than 30 percent of calories from fat).

After four years, the participants on the Mediterranean diet required fewer drugs to control blood sugar levels, and they experienced improved insulin sensitivity, greater weight loss, and a reduction in coronary risk factors.

This study doesn’t surprise me in the least. I’ve been using diet and other lifestyle modifications to treat—even reverse—diabetes for more than 30 years with excellent results.

At the Whitaker Wellness Institute, I help patients living with diabetes control blood sugar levels with a lower-carbohydrate version of the Mediterranean diet. Meals are centered around lean protein (fish, chicken, turkey, tofu, beans, legumes), plenty of fresh vegetables, nuts and seeds, healthful fats, and a small amount of low-glycemic fruit.

Exercise (at least 30 minutes most days of the week), a targeted nutritional supplement program, and weight loss (if appropriate) round out our natural diabetes treatments.

Before consenting to a drug regimen that your conventional doc will likely say you’ll have to be on for the rest of your life, you owe it to yourself to give these natural diabetes treatments a try.