Serve up a little diabetes prevention for breakfast

Lately, I’ve been extra-focused on COVID-19 and helping us get to the other side of this uncertain period.  

But even though I haven’t devoted as much time talking about diet and weight loss over the last year, both topics are of utmost importance. (If anything, they’re more important than ever.)  

So, to follow up on yesterday’s discussion about how to ward off hunger and melt away those pandemic pounds, let’s talk about yet another reason to start adopting a low-carb diet—starting today…   

Omelets before oatmeal 

According to a recent study, eating a breakfast that’s very low in carbs—but high in fat—can help people with type 2 diabetes control their blood sugar, both after meals and in general.  

This research looked at adults with relatively well–controlled diabetes, and an average HbA1c of 6.7. One group ate a low-carb, high-fat breakfast—in the form of an omelet with cheese and low-carb veggies. (A personal favorite of mine.) The other group ate a parfait of oatmeal, berries, and Greek yogurt—which complies with conventional dietary guidelines, but is basically pure sugar.   

The low-carb, high-fat breakfast came in at less than 10 percent carbohydrate, 85 percent fat, and 15 percent protein. The “conventional dietary guidelines” breakfast was also 15 percent protein—but 55 percent carbohydrates, and 30 percent fat.  

So it should come as no surprise that the omelet group benefited from significantly lower blood sugar than the parfait group.  

Now, this study only focused on a low–carb, high–fat breakfast. (This is especially relevant, since the post-breakfast blood sugar spike is the largest of the day for people with type 2 diabetes—even those who have their blood sugar under control. Insulin resistance also peaks in the morning.)  

But you can probably imagine how well you could control your blood sugar—and how many drugs you could probably toss—if you simply ate low-carb and high–fat all day long. 

The one thing you can control 

For the millionth time, folks: Sugar kills—but healthy fats keep your metabolism firing on all cylinders. And it’s always nice to have a study prove what us low-carb gurus have known all along. 

But once again, this doesn’t mean that you need to eat breakfast to keep your blood sugar in check. (Plenty of research points to the role of fasting in diabetes prevention.)  

That said, if you’re going to eat a meal in the morning, whipping up an omelet is the best way to go. Here’s why…  

You may recall a previous study I shared here, which appeared in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition back in 2015. Researchers examined the eating habits of just over 2,330 men between the ages of 42 and 60 years and found a clear connection between egg consumption and lower blood sugar levels. 

In fact, researchers found that men who ate approximately four eggs per week had a 38 percent lower risk of type 2 diabetes than those who only ate one egg per week. 

But what I find even more interesting about this study is that this effect held strong even after the researchers took other risk factors into account, like exercise, body mass index, smoking, and the consumption (or lack thereof) of fruits and vegetables. 

In other words, adding eggs to your diet offers distinct—and significant—protection against type 2 diabetes, all by itself. (So just imagine how much MORE protection you’d get if you also added a couple of handfuls of fresh veggies like organic spinach to your eggs… then headed out for a walk after breakfast.) 

As we are all too aware by now, high blood sugar is one of the biggest risk factors behind COVID-19 hospitalization and death. So we could all stand to benefit from better control in this department. (And unlike so many other aspects of this pandemic, we actually can do something about it.)   

So as we set out into 2021, let’s eat to live—not live to eat. Because the biggest comfort your food can provide is the promise of a longer, healthier life… regardless of the chaos around you.  

For additional ways to thrive through the continued chaos of COVID-19, check out the latest issue of my monthly Logical Health Alternatives newsletter. Not yet a subscriber? Click here now! 

Source: 

“Eggs for breakfast benefits those with diabetes: Low-carb breakfast improves control of blood glucose levels.” Science Daily, 04/11/2019. (sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190411101835.htm)