People with type 2 diabetes could benefit from fasting diet

A study has found that intermittent fasting could be the solution for people with type 2 diabetes to control their blood sugar levels better.

The researchers found that those with diabetes who limited their eating to within a ten-hour window had blood sugar levels in the normal range for approximately three hours longer than when they ate whenever they pleased.

When participating in a time-restricted eating pattern, they also found that those patients experienced consistently lower morning fasting glucose and 24-hour blood sugar levels.

For this study, fourteen adults with type 2 diabetes were fitted with continuous glucose monitoring devices that measured their blood sugar every fifteen minutes. They were asked to limit their food intake to a ten-hour window each day, with the window closing no later than six p.m.
The participants were told to eat as they usually would during their food intake window, with no dietary restrictions. Outside the allotted time, they were only allowed to drink water, black coffee, zero-calorie soft drinks and plain tea.

The participants spent three weeks on the intermittent fasting diet and then another three weeks eating whenever they liked as they usually would.

During intermittent fasting, participants had normal blood sugar levels an average of fifteen hours a day, compared to an average of twelve hours daily when they ate whenever they wanted.

The results importantly showed that the ten-hour eating window proved safe for the participants, who didn’t experience any significant surge in hypoglycemia or any additional side effects when they fasted.