In caring for patients with cardiometabolic conditions like diabetes, nutrition has to be front and center, including guidance on processed foods. While sugar intake is important for glucose control in diabetes, this study proves what we already knew. Processed foods worsen diabetes along, not to mention the other health issues shown by other studies.
University of Texas at Austin researchers used diet diaries and Hemoglobin A1c measurements to assess the effects of processed foods on 273 African Americans who they recruited through Austin area churches. The A1c serves as an average of a person’s blood sugar over the prior 6-12 weeks (rather than sticking their fingers repeatedly to gather enough single measurements to make an average).
Prior studies by others had indicated that higher intakes of processed foods were correlated with heart disease, anxiety, depression, sleep disorders, and even early death. You could initially blame the increased sugar, salt, and fats in these processed foods, but this study suggests that it is more than just those ingredients. They believe that the artificial ingredients add more to the equation than just flavor and packaging.
In the study, when the amount of sugar and salt were controlled, those who ate the highest amounts processed foods showed a 0.28 increase in their A1c measurement versus the average. This is not huge, but it is a real difference indicating that something else besides salt and sugar is adding to the adverse effects. Just as important was the fact that those who ate lower amounts of processed foods had a 0.30 point lower A1c.
While the old-fashioned way of looking at nutrition through ‘fats, carbs, and proteins’ or ‘meats, veggies, and starches’ is worthwhile, we have to take seriously the effects of processed foods on our health. As more studies like these come out, hopefully our supermarkets will shift their offerings in response to market pressures. For now, make wiser choices by spending more grocery money on the periphery of the store rather than in the processed food aisles. With that, you can hope for a healthier, more abundant life.
Original Article:
Erin A. Hudson, Jaimie N. Davis, Keally Haushalter, Hirofumi Tanaka, Susan K. Dubois, Mary A. Steinhardt, Marissa Burgermaster. Degree of Food Processing is Associated with Glycemic Control in African American Adults with Type 2 Diabetes: Findings from the TX STRIDE Clinical Trial. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 2024; DOI: 10.1016/j.jand.2024.10.007
Thanks to Science Daily:
University of Texas at Austin. “Ultra-processed foods pose unique dangers for people with type 2 diabetes.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 17 October 2024. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/10/241017172942.htm>.
Sanctuary Functional Medicine, under the direction of Dr Eric Potter, IFMCP MD, provides functional medicine services to Nashville, Middle Tennessee and beyond. We frequently treat patients from Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, and more... offering the hope of healthier more abundant lives to those with chronic illness.
