In the context of an overall diabetes-healthy diet, you may drink grapefruit juice in moderation as a diabetic, as long as your doctor confirms that you're not taking any medications that have dangerous interactions with grapefruit juice. That said, whole fruits are a choice that's healthier for diabetics than juice.
Grapefruit Juice and Diabetes
As it is a source of carbohydrate with a low Glycemic Index, grapefruit juice is generally considered a suitable beverage for diabetics when it's consumed in moderation. In fact, the American Diabetes Association lists grapefruit, along with other citrus fruits, as a diabetes superfood, because it's loaded with nutrients. But like other juices, grapefruit juice contains sugar and should therefore be consumed in moderation. Any grapefruit juice you drink also needs to be counted toward your total carbohydrate intake for the day. Eating a meal with grapefruit juice may help blunt its blood sugar-raising effects. On the Glycemic Index, grapefruit juice rates 48, just two points higher than orange or pineapple juice and well within the low-GI. range.
Drug Interaction Warning
Although it has no known interactions with insulin or other diabetes medications, grapefruit juice can interact with several types of medications. Therefore, diabetics who take prescription medication should consult their doctors to make sure it's safe for them to drink grapefruit juice. According to the Mayo Clinic website, some classes of medications that have known interactions with grapefruit and grapefruit juice include: anti-anxiety drugs, anti-seizure medications, anti-depressants, calcium-channel blockers, statins, antihistamines, retrovirals, anti-arrhythmia drugs and immunosuppressants.
Grapefruit and Diabetes Treatment
While further research is necessary to confirm these findings, an animal study supported by the National Institutes of Health and published in the journal "PLoS ONE" in August 2010 suggests that a substance in grapefruit and grapefruit juice may be useful in the treatment of diabetes. The study concluded that naringenin, a flavonoid in grapefruit that gives the fruit its bitter taste, causes the livers of rats to break down fatty acids instead of carbohydrates, mimicking the effects of the lipid-lowering drug fenofibrate and the anti-diabeic drug rosiglitazone. The study's authors say that if these results extend to humans, naringenin from grapefruit may prove very beneficial in treating type-2 diabetes.
Considerations
Although grapefruit juice is an acceptable food for diabetics who don't take medications that interact with grapefruit juice, a whole grapefruit is a better choice for diabetics than juice, as it contains healthy fiber that helps prevent a spike in blood sugar. Furthermore, while grapefruit and grapefruit juice don't have any known interactions with diabetes medications, it's important to check with your doctor before consuming grapefruit or its juice if you take any type of medication, including any medicines you take to manage your diabetes, as grapefruit may have drug interactions that haven't yet been identified.
References
- Fruit Juice Australia: Frequently Asked Questions
- DiabetesNet.com: Glycemic Index
- Diabetes Action Research & Education Foundation: Ask the Diabetes Educator Archive
- ScienceDaily; New Reasons To Avoid Grapefruit And Other Juices When Taking Certain Drugs; August 2008
- MayoClinic.com; Grapefruit Juice: Beware of Dangerous Medication Interactions; Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.; November 2010
- "PloS ONE"; Transcriptional Regulation of Human and Rat Hepatic Lipid Metabolism by the Grapefruit Flavonoid Naringenin: Role of PPARa, PPARc and LXRa; J Goldwasser, et al.; August 2010
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