Diabetes reversal: Cut down rice, wheat consumption and increase protein intake to reverse diabetes, says ICMR study

The recent study on diabetes remission can be the answer to very simple questions asked by patients. A population-based Indian Council of Medical Research–India Diabetes (ICMR-INDIAB) study has made dietary recommendations for newly diagnosed diabetes, and prediabetes.

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Diabetes is a chronic condition that affects the way the body uses food into energy. This metabolic disorder causes high blood sugar and if left untreated it can affect the nerves, eyes, kidney and other major organs of the body. Presence of diabetes can also affect other bodily functions. Therefore it is essential to get the blood sugar level checked and manage the diabetes level.

"Our results underline the need for new dietary guidelines that recommend appropriate changes in macronutrient composition for reducing the burden due to diabetes in South Asia," the study says.

The study was recently published in the journal Diabetes Care.

For newly diagnosed diabetes the study recommends reducing carb consumption to 55%, increasing protein and fat to 20% and 25%, respectively. Usually carbohydrate comprises more than 70% of our diet, so what basically the study is suggesting is to increase more plant and animal proteins and cut down a small portion of carbs.

Likewise, for prediabetes it recommends up to 56% of carbohydrate, 20% of protein and 27% of fat.

A total of 18,090 adults were studied for this purpose.

While emphasizing on reducing the consumption of white rice to manage diabetes, Dr V Mohan, one of the authors of the study, told the media that wheat is equally bad.

If you are having 2 cups of rice or 4 rotis for lunch, you can replace one roti or 1-1/2 cup of rice with good protein.

The expert also recommends against consumption of red meat. Plant protein is good, fish and chicken are also good, but not red meat, he says.

In India, currently 74 million people are living with diabetes and another 80 million are pre-diabetic. The prevalence of diabetes in India has risen from 7.1% in 2009 to 8.9% in 2019.

Pre-diabetic progresses to diabetes very fast.

It is estimated that India will have 135 million diabetics by 2045.

As per a 2021 research study titled "Epidemiology of type 2 diabetes in India" in which Dr V Mohan is also an author, approximately 57% of the individuals remain undiagnosed. India ranks second after China in the global diabetes epidemic.

Of the total number of diabetes patients in India, 12.1 million are aged >65 years, which is estimated to increase to 27.5 million in the year 2045.

In 2019, a year before the COVID pandemic hit the world, diabetes claimed 1.6 million lives, as per the World Health Organisation (WHO) and ranked 9th among all the deaths caused by non-communicable diseases. The first one was ischaemic heart disease followed by stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lower respiratory infections.

"Diabetes is also responsible for the largest rise in male deaths among the top 10, with an 80% increase since 2000," the WHO says.

While in lower middle income countries diabetes remains the 9th leading cause of deaths, in upper middle income countries it is the 6th leading cause of death. In high income countries, it is the 10th leading cause of death.

The risk for diabetes is promoted by:

Obesity

Physical inactivity

Sedentary lifestyle

Unhealthy diet

Behavioural habits

Genetics

Less sleep

Stress

Exposure to pollutants

Uncontrolled blood pressure

Uncontrolled blood cholesterol

Controlled blood pressure and lipid level can delay the start of the complications associated with diabetes.

As per the US CDC, if you are physically inactive less than 3 times a week, you are prone to develop diabetes. "If you have non-alcoholic fatty liver disease you may also be at risk for type 2 diabetes," it also says and adds that the condition can be prevented or delayed making changes in the lifestyle habits.

It is worthy to note that majority of the risk factors are modifiable and small changes in these can cut down the risk of diabetes.

Diabetes is a progressive disorder; it causes severe complications as and when it progresses.

Unmanaged diabetes makes the person prone to vascular diseases. "Uncontrolled diabetes leads to increased risk of vascular disease and much of the burden of type 2 diabetes is caused by macrovascular (cardiovascular (CV), cerebrovascular, and peripheral artery disease) and microvascular (diabetic retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy) complications," says the 2021 research study.

Several research studies have also linked diabetes with liver disease, cancer, mental health and disability.

If the disease is running in your family, you need to be careful about it. Also, if your lifestyle habits include less physical activity, more intake of carbs and sugar then you need to be extra careful about diabetes.

Apart from this, if you have conditions like cholesterol and blood pressure, you need to be extra careful about diabetes as it increases the risk associated with this disease.

"If you have a family health history of diabetes, you are more likely to have prediabetes and develop diabetes. You are also more likely to get type 2 diabetes if you have had gestational diabetes," warns the US CDC.