I shared an article earlier written by Diana Rodgers over at RobbWolf.com. It’s an article about why our dietary guidelines for diabetics are so fundamentally flawed. It’s honest, straight to the point and unfortunately very true. You can find the original article here but I summarized it below and am also adding some comments.

Summary

• “Everything in moderation” is a fundamentally flawed guideline
• The whole “eat these superfoods to fix your messed up diet” thinking is wrong
• Reduce blood sugar by… not eating sugar!
• We don’t need carbohydrates
• Overeating carbohydrates significantly increases your risk of diabetes
• Not all carbs are created equal
• Type 2 diabetes is preventable

 

Everything In Moderation

Tell people to eat “everything in moderation” and, less meat, less fat, and more whole grains, is what is unfortunately even taught dietitians and through them passed on to the public via guidelines. The problem is,  this information is making people sick. A lot of people don’t know what is healthy and what is not so they just rely on a very simple mantra which is “everything in moderation”. Even in moderation certain things are unhealthy. Smoking in moderation is bad for you, cocaine is bad for you, sugar is bad for you. “Everything in moderation” is way too simple and simply false.

Superfoods Don’t Exist

Every single social media newsfeed is full of top X lists of superfoods that improve your health. While some of them might be healthy, a lot of the lists leave out a lot of information. In her article she mentions a list of 10 superfoods for diabetics. Problem is, they are leaving out the fact that a lot of the foods contain high amounts of carbohydrates. Also, this particular list doesn’t include any high protein food or healthy fats. But recommending foods that are high in carbohydrates to diabetics is like recommending drinks to alcoholics that still have a lot of alcohol in it. How about cutting the substance that makes you sick out of your diet?

Instead of focusing on sprinkling some healthy food on the junk food people eat, shifting to a diet that is overall healthy is a more sustainable and better option. You can drink as many smoothies as you like but if your overall diet is consisting of instant noodles, junk food and sugar, you won’t be any healthier in the end. Rather save the money and use it for your medical bills. You might actually need it.

 

We Don’t Need Carbohydrates

I mentioned this in a previous article but the truth is humans do not need carbohydrates.

The way the RDA (recommended daily allowance) for carbohydrates is sometimes calculated – depending on who calculates it – is by simply calculating how much glucose do you need not to go into ketosis. That’s why you sometimes find recommendation of 87g-112 grams per day. However, being in ketosis is not a bad thing at all. It simply means that your body ran out of glucose and is not building new “fuel” for your body by refunctioning protein.

Of course there’s actually tons of evidence that increased carbohydrate increases type 2 diabetes, and that reducing sugar and carb intake reduces blood sugar. Pubmed lights up with evidence showing a low-carbohydrate diet is therapeutic in type-2 diabetes.

 

Consequences Of A High Carb Diet

Get this: dietitians are recommending diabetes 2 patients to eat more carbohydrates than the RDA. Wait, what? We are recommending people who are not able to manage their blood sugar levels naturally anymore more than RDA of the macronutrient that causes blood sugar levels to rise?

“The general guideline for  adults with diabetes is 45 to 60 grams of carbohydrate per meal, and snacks having 15 to 30 grams of carbs. For the average adult eating 3 meals and 2 snacks a day (recommended) this equals a daily recommended intake of between 165g and 240g of carbs per day.”

That is insane! On top of that they are recommending to count carbs with 15 grams of carbs being one serving. “One serving of carbs could be 4oz fruit, 1 slice of bread, 1/3 cup of rice (that is a VERY small amount of rice), 2 cookies, or a 2 inch square of brownie”. This approach doesn’t teach people the difference in quality. Common sense tells us that a slice of whole wheat bread is better than a brownie but this system completely ignores that. The guidelines also completely ignore the quality and quantity of meats and fats.

By the way, WeightWatchers’ point system has exactly the same flaw just across all macronutrients.

Why Are We Doing This?

Simply put because you make more money off of sick people. Also, junk food is sexier than a plain roasted chicken breast. The junk food industry is huge, the pharma industry is huge and all of them make money off of you and me consuming their products and then ending up sick needing insulin. Industries of that size have huge lobbies and enough resources to influence policy makers and researchers.

What Diabetics Should Actually Eat

Diana Rodgers finishes her article by listing up 10 real foods that are actually healthy and just great for diabetics.

1. Steak
2. Salmon
3. Lamb
4. Swiss Chard
5. Red Peppers
6. Avocados
7. Coconuts
8. Broccoli
9. Almonds
10. Butter

 

If you’ve been reading Starfield-Fitness now for a while, you’ve probably already realized

1. doctor’s aren’t there to prevent you from getting sick (article)
2. some studies are industry funded and biased (article)
3. even public dietary guidelines can be flawed thanks to industry lobbies (article)