Controlling blood sugar is of utmost importance to people with diabetes. This can be a frustrating task. Some people, like this writer, find it exceedingly difficult to bring blood glucose into a healthy range. What can they do to help blood sugar?
Wrestling with Recalcitrant Blood Sugar:
Q. I am diabetic. I am on an insulin pump and take two medications to control blood sugar. About a year ago, I could not get my blood sugar down below 225 no matter what I did.
When I started getting diarrhea all the time, I thought I might have a gluten allergy so I went gluten free. That took care of the diarrhea, but here is the surprising part: it dropped my blood sugars over 100 points!
My insulin dose is now lower and I’m getting consistently good blood sugar readings. Has anyone else reported that a gluten-free diet can help blood sugar?
Avoiding Gluten to Help Blood Sugar:
A. Several years ago we interviewed Richard Bernstein, MD, on our radio show. He is a type 1 diabetic who specializes in treating diabetes.
He insists that a very low-carbohydrate diet, which might be achieved by going gluten free, can help control blood sugar. You can learn more about his perspective from his book, Dr. Bernstein’s Diabetes Solution.
If you think about the foods that are rich in gluten, you have bread, pasta, crackers, cookies, pretzels and beer. Simply substituting gluten-free versions for these high-carb foods might not help blood sugar, but avoiding them completely might be quite useful.
