Sugar-Filled Food LOWERS Diabetes Risk
If you or a loved one has type 2 diabetes, I’m sure you’ve heard the standard lecture about sugar.
The short version: Stay away from it at all costs.
Most people assume this ban applies to fruit… nature’s sweet treats… as well.
That means, if you’ve managed to dodge the disease so far, you likely also believe you need to limit fruit to avoid developing diabetes to begin with.
Well, stay tuned because I’m about to expose another mainstream “fact” for what it really is…
In a recent study, more than 26,000 adults completed a 3-part dietary history evaluation and had their HbA1c values (a measurement of blood sugar over time) tested.
The volunteers were then divided into five categories based on their carbohydrate consumption:
- High sugar-sweetened beverages
- High juices
- High refined carbohydrates/low fruit and vegetables
- High fruit
- High vegetables/low added sugar
Much to everyone’s surprise, the folks who ate a LOT of fruit had a significantly LOWER risk of type 2 diabetes than the participants who consumed a lot of refined carbohydrates and a low amount of fruit.
This confirms not all carbs are created equal.
Refined carbs—like cereal, pastries, bagels, and anything white (pasta, bread, rice)—are stripped of their bran, fiber, and nutrients.
Eating THEM results in rapid spikes in blood sugar and insulin levels.
Fruit, on the other hand, contains fructose, fiber, and numerous nutrients. This causes your body to process it more slowly, leading to smaller increases in blood sugar levels.
And because fiber is filling, eating enough fruit to negatively affect blood sugar is challenging.
However, fruit juice is a different story. Since the fiber is removed, all the sugar gets funneled directly into your bloodstream.
Overall, no matter what form the sugar comes in, healthy women shouldn’t eat more than six teaspoons daily, and men should swallow no more than nine.
And if you already have type 2 diabetes, limit your sugar intake to six teaspoons (25 grams) or less a day.
P.S. Discover the delicious fruit salad secret to fighting aging.
SOURCE:
Olsson, K., González-Padilla, E., Janzi, S. et al. Clusters of carbohydrate-rich foods and associations with type 2 diabetes incidence: a prospective cohort study. Nutr J 22, 71 (2023). doi. org/ 10.1186 / s12937-023-00906-0
