Animal Food And Diabetes Don't Mix

Here are three large, prospective studies, in this year alone, providing evidence that meat and dairy consumption contribute to the development of type 2 diabetes:

1. Association Between Dietary Meat Consumption And Incident Type 2 Diabetes: The EPIC-Interact Study, Diabetologia, January 2013

16,835 participants.

They found a significant association with type 2 diabetes and each of the following: total meat consumption, red meat consumption, and processed meat consumption. The association was dose-dependent; for every 50 gram increase (about 2 ounces) there was a corresponding increase in diabetes risk. For women, there was also an association between poultry consumption and diabetes.

"This prospective study confirms a positive association between high consumption of total and red meat and incident type 2 diabetes in a large cohort of European adults."

2. Changes in Red Meat Consumption and Subsequent Risk of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Three Cohorts of US Men and Women, JAMA Internal Medicine, July 2013

149,143 participants

"Increasing red meat intake of more than 0.50 servings per day was associated with a 48% elevated risk [of type 2 diabetes] in the subsequent 4-year period."

"Our results confirm the robustness of the association between red meat and [type 2 diabetes] and add further evidence that limiting red meat consumption over time confers benefits for [type 2 diabetes] prevention."

A half a serving is just 1 or 2 ounces.

3. Dietary Acid Load And Risk Of Type 2 Diabetes: The E3N-EPIC Cohort Study, Diabetologia, Published online 11 November 2013

66,485 participants.

Those consuming foods with the most acid-forming potential had a 56% increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Interestingly, women with normal body weight (BMI less than 25) had a 96% increased risk - the highest risk. Overweight women also had an increased risk. They speculated that the association may be independent of body weight.

"We have demonstrated for the first time in a large prospective study that dietary acid load was positively associated with type 2 diabetes risk, independently of other known risk factors for diabetes. Our results need to be validated in other populations, and may lead to promotion of diets with a low acid load for the prevention of diabetes. Further research is required on the underlying mechanisms."

The underlying mechanism probably involves insulin resistance. Acidosis interferes with insulin receptor binding.

Recall from this post that a diet with a high acid load is a diet high in meat and other animal protein, especially cheese.
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Almost every day I hear, "But I can't eat carbohydrate, it raises by blood sugar." "I have to eat meat." If you have diabetes, you have to eat carbohydrates. But you don't eat processed, nutrient-deficient carbohydrates. You eat... Well, here's How Keith Defeated Diabetes:

"When Keith was first diagnosed, his HbA1c was a staggering 9 percent. After a few months of healthy eating, his level dipped to 6 percent. In March, Keith and my mother began following a meat-free diet, and now his HbA1c is at 5 percent! Astonished, the doctor declared that Keith no longer had diabetes!"

Keith lowered his blood glucose by eating a whole food, plant-based diet that was high in carbohydrates ("okra, string beans, lettuce, beets, carrots, cantaloupes, peppers, watermelons, tomatoes"). He reduced his blood glucose so much that he stopped using all diabetes medications. If he is holding his HbA1c at 5%, after at least 10 years of diabetes, and without meds, he deserves a medal.
________ Photo of deli platter from allyrose18's Flickr stream.