Can you reverse diabetes with keto?

Is keto safe for diabetics?

Benefits and challenges for diabetics on keto

Many people who follow the keto diet will be able to tell you about successfully losing weight and loving their diet. Keto is immensely popular and many claim that it comes with great health benefits.

But is this diet, one that is high in fat and low in carbohydrates really that healthy? Should individuals with diabetes, for example, be following it? Let’s take a look.

High fat, low carb

The ketogenic diet is an eating plan that includes high amounts of fat, low to moderate amounts of protein, and very little carbohydrates.

On keto you will typically be indulging in rich foods like butter, cheese, eggs, meat, nuts, oils and seafood. For the most part you will steer clear of fruit, some vegetables, grains, potatoes and sweets.

The main goal of the keto diet is to restrict carbohydrate intake.The plan aims for about 5% of calories from carbs, 20% from protein and 75% from dietary fats.

This meal plan aims to put your body in a state of nutritional ketosis. In this state your body burns fat for energy rather than glucose.

Benefits of keto for diabetics

Scientists found that the main reason diabetes patients decide to try the keto diet is because they want to lose weight, improve blood sugar control and even reverse their condition and stop taking medication.

Studies found that a keto diet can be effective in helping some people with type 2 diabetes because it allows the body to keep blood sugar levels at a low, but healthy level.

Blood sugar control is also assisted by the lower intake of carbohydrates.

The diet’s lower intake of carbohydrates may help minimise large fluctuations in blood sugar, which could better impact several clinical markers of blood sugar control.

Other potential benefits of keto include:

• weight loss
• a reduced dependency on anti-diabetic medication
• lower blood pressure
• an improved insulin sensitivity
• improvements in high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, without increasing low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol
• improvements in triglycerides
• improved quality of life
• improved feelings of fullness

A massive benefit of the keto diet is the potential to leave behind your medication. This might be possible because of the way keto helps reduce blood sugar levels and weight.

According a study published in Nutrition Reviews people with type 2 diabetes who followed keto could reduce their need to take anti-diabetic medication, but only for up to 12 months.

The reason for this is that many people find it hard to stick to keto in the long term. Then, as you add carbohydrates back into your diet, your diabetes medication will need to be increased again.

Keto vs the Mediterranean diet

The Mediterranean diet is widely considered a healthy choice for individuals with diabetes. This diet focuses on plant-based foods, allowing whole grains and legumes. 

Moderate amounts of dairy, poultry, eggs and seafood are allowed, and red meat only once in a while.

In a study conducted from June 2019 to December 2020, 40 adults with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes were recruited to try both the keto and Mediterranean diet.

Half the participants started with keto, and the other half with the Mediterranean diet. After 12 weeks, the groups switched and tried the other diet for 12 weeks.

At various points researchers collected blood samples to evaluate blood glucose control, lipid control, body weight and other clinical measures. 

Throughout the study, participants were interviewed on who closely they are sticking to the diets and how satisfied they were following these diets.

The results showed both diets improving blood glucose control almost equally. Weight loss was also similar (8% on keto and 7% on Mediterranean).

The main difference between the diet was LDL cholesterol and triglyceride (a type of fat in your blood) levels. 

LDL cholesterol increased on the keto diet and decreased on the Mediterranean diet, making the second one a better option for cholesterol control. Triglyceride decreased on both diets, but it dropped more on keto.

In terms of nutrition, the keto diet provided less fibre, thiamin, vitamins B6, C, D and E, and phosphorus. Only vitamin B was higher on keto.

Keto and diabetes – are there risks?

When you change your body’s primary energy source from carbs to fat, this causes an increase of ketones in the blood. 

This is dietary ketosis, and shouldn’t be confused with ketoacidosis, which is an extremely dangerous condition.

If you have too many ketones, you increase your risk for developing diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA).

DKA occurs mostly in type – diabetes when blood glucose is too high because of a lack of insulin. If ketones are too high, DKA is possible in type 2 diabetes, but it is rare.

If you are following the keto diet, regularly test your blood sugar levels throughout the day to make sure they remain in a safe range. You can also test your ketone levels to ensure you are not at risk for DKA.

DKA is a medical emergency and you should get to a doctor immediately. Look out for the following symptoms:

• Consistently high blood sugar
• Dry mouth
• Frequent urination
• Nausea
• Breath that has a fruit-like odour
• Difficulty breathing

Conclusion

Regardless of which medical condition you might have, few things beat the idea of being able to stop medication through natural measures. And keto certainly brings hope to diabetic patients.

There isn’t enough evidence to support the safety of keto for diabetics in the long term, mostly because the diet is so restrictive that many people give up on it after some time. 

For now, keto definitely seems to have great benefits. It’s always best though to consult with your healthcare professional if you do decide to switch to keto.