Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes. / Neal D. Barnard, 2007. Rodale, Inc. 272 pages.
Part 3 of a series of posts on carbohydrates and diet.
Neal D. Barnard, M.D., defends a fat-free diet. He says if you choose fat over carbohydrates, the result will be an imbalance in your system in favor of fats. Such a situation may incapacitate your digestion. The reason he gives is that fat in the diet supplies fat to the cells and thus increases insulin resistance. If you prefer fats, not realizing that they don’t properly assimilate in your system, you might blame carbohydrates for increasing your blood sugar, even though you’re being so careful otherwise with your diet.
Here the question to ask is, does increased fat predispose the cell to reject insulin? Does fat “get in the way” of insulin doing its job? Or does insulin take a back seat to other nutrients when indeed there is just too much glucose in the blood?
Possibly one reason I chose to read about Dr. Neal Barnard’s program is his vegan approach to diet. I noted that vegan choices rather than dairy and meat will correct and often reverse diabetes, a compelling theory in its own right. The vegan outlook makes him unique among doctor-writers I’ve seen so far, with the exception of Joel Fuhrman (not included in this article), who also sees the food solution as vegan-based. Barnard’s main concept is that fat in the diet from animal sources leads to diabetes as well as a range of health problems stemming from being overweight. Rather than relying on pharmaceutical drugs to supply relief from their problems, Barnard says people should radically change their food sources.
While I agree with changes in the diet, I did not at first accept or understand the theory that fat is bad for the body. In contrast to popular opinion, I believed in the idea that we need fat for our health. The more, the better.
So I have to admit that at first, Barnard’s theory about fat being the culprit in diabetes did not make sense to me at all. However, I see that I’ve been ignoring two important points. If you take in more fats than you can handle—and the proof is at your waistline—less might actually be better. No matter how good, good fats are, too much of a good thing can sabotage its benefits.
Besides restricting fat other components of food should be taken into account. One simple component is that of fiber in fruits and vegetables. Nutritionists say it’s extremely important to make sure there is adequate fiber. In other words, foods of all kinds must be paired with fiber.
Barnard suggests 8 servings per day (1/2 cu each) of whole grains, 3 servings per day of legumes, 4 or more servings per day of vegetables with low GI, and fruits with low GI—3 or more servings per day.
That translates, in his program, to a menu high in fiber, grains, vegetables and fruits as shown on page 186: breakfast of oatmeal with soymilk; lunch of blackeye peas and sweet potato soup, toasted rye bread and spinach salad w/ orange and creamy dressing (silken tofu); an afternoon fruit smoothie as a snack; and for dinner, Lebanese lentils and pasta, broccoli, and orange-applesauce-date cake.
Doesn’t sound bad at all, considering a negligible amount of fat—under 10 grams for the day. The solution to weight loss and averting metabolic disease is generally a high-fiber plant-based diet, with some fats and proteins from plants and vegan-style products.
Details from two more approaches to carbohydrates in these posts:
Deanna Minich, PhD’s Full-Spectrum plan
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