I recently returned from the American Diabetes Association (ADA) annual meeting profoundly disappointed. The only truly interesting seminars focused on the “benefits” of gastric bypass surgery to treat diabetes. I say “benefits” because the most-used drugs appear to only accelerate earlier death from diabetes, and the best dietary management appears to be discounted sales of ADA cookbooks (all in glorious color) that continually stress the benefits of low-fat, high-carbohydrate meals.
Even more disappointing was the virtual absence of any speakers discussing the role of inflammation in the development of diabetes or any speaker discussing the potential of anti-inflammatory diets for the management of diabetes. However, if you read between the lines, there is a glimmer of hope. As drastic as gastric bypass surgery is (now using the more politically correct description as “metabolic surgery”), at least it has pointed out the benefits of increasing the secretion of certain gut hormones (PYY and GLP-1) that cause the suppression of hunger and improved blood sugar control. Both of these hormones are stimulated by increasing the protein content in the diet. No wonder the ADA diet doesn’t work. Since it is high in carbohydrate, by definition, it is low in protein.