Neal D. Barnard, M.D., wrote "Dr. Neal Barnard's Program for Reversing Diabetes" in 2007, in which he explains his dietary advice for controlling and possibly reversing diabetes. He recommends a low-fat vegan diet focusing mainly on foods that are low on the glycemic index. To help people get started on this diet, he developed the 21-Day Vegan Kickstart Diet in 2010 along with the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine. Discuss dietary changes with your doctor, especially if you have diabetes.
Foods Included
When following Barnard's diet, you only consume fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes and whole grains. Sugar is allowed, but only in small amounts and preferably in natural forms rather than processed forms. You need to take a vitamin B-12 supplement each day, as there are no reliable vegan sources of this vitamin, which is found mainly in animal products.
Foods Not Allowed
As the Barnard's diet is a vegan diet, you avoid all animal products. Do not eat meat, poultry, fish, dairy or eggs. Other foods to avoid include added vegetable oils, olives and avocado, due to their high fat content, and potatoes, refined flours, pineapple and watermelon due to their ability to make blood sugar spike.
Benefits
Vegetarian diets may help lower your risk for high blood pressure, heart disease, osteoporosis, diabetes, cancer, dementia, arthritis, kidney disease, gallstones and diverticular disease. A low-fat vegan diet similar to the one Barnard recommends can lower blood sugar and heart disease risk factors in people with Type 2 diabetes more than the diet recommended by the American Diabetes Association, according to a study led by Barnard published in "Diabetes Care" in August 2006.
Considerations
The diet recommended by Barnard is not intended as a weight-loss diet, although you may experience weight loss if you follow this diet. It is meant as a lifestyle change to lower your risk for diseases, including diabetes. However, this diet is restrictive, and you may find it hard to stick to.
References
- Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine: Ten Sample Qs and As for Media Interviews: Dr. Neal Barnard's Program for Reversing Diabetes
- "Palm Beach Daily News"; Dr. Neal Barnard Touts Vegan Diet for Diabetes, Heart Disease, in MorseLife Talk; Carolyn Susman; March 2011
- "Diabetes Care"; A Low-Fat Vegan Diet Improves Glycemic Control and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in a Randomized Clinical Trial in Individuals With Type 2 Diabetes; Neal D. Barnard, et al.; August 2006
- Diets in Review: 21-Day Vegan Kickstart
- "Forum of Nutrition"; Vegetarian Diets: What Are the Advantages?; C. Leitzmann; 2005
