An Effective Behavioral Change for Glycemic Control and Weight Management in Patients With Type 1 and 2 Diabetes
Johanna Burani, MS, RD, CDE and Palma J. Longo, PhD
From Nutrition Works, Mendham, New Jersey (Ms Burani), and the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (Dr Longo).
Correspondence to Johanna Burani, MS, RD, CDE, Nutrition Works, 51 Dean Road, Mendham, NJ 07945 (jburani@gmail.com).
Purpose
This retrospective study evaluated the incorporation of low–glycemic index (GI) carbohydrates into daily meal planning as an effective behavioral lifestyle change to improve glycemic control and weight management in patients with type 1 and 2 diabetes.
Methods
Twenty-one subjects participated in this study. All office visits and interview sessions took place in a 2-physician private medical practice setting in Wayne, New Jersey. Patients' pre- and postcounseling HbA1c and body mass index (BMI) values and their antidiabetic medication dosages were recorded. Audiotaped interviews were conducted using the 10-question Glycemic Index Foods Quiz (GIFQ) and the 29-question Interview Questionnaire (IQ). The GI values of pre- and postcounseling meals were calculated. Assessment was based on triangulating the subjects' adherence to the low-GI carbohydrate behavioral change and the primary outcome measures: HbA1c and BMI.
Results
Low-GI medical nutrition therapy (LGI-MNT) counseling reduced HbA1c by 19% (mean drop of 1.5 U) and decreased BMI by 8% (mean loss of 17 pounds). This was accomplished by the participants independently lowering the GI values of their meals by 25% (mean reduction of 15 points). Results were achieved over a time frame of 3 to 36 months from the initial LGI-MNT counseling session.
Conclusions
Daily incorporation of low-GI carbohydrates in meal planning can be an effective diabetes self-management strategy for glycemic control and weight management. The documented responses to the subjects' conceptual and practical knowledge of the GI confirm their acceptance of this approach as a permanent behavioral lifestyle change and not a "diet." The positive results of this study attest to what worked for these subjects, inviting diabetes educators to consider offering low-GI dietary advice to their diabetes patients.
http://tde.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/32/1/78
Study: Low GI Diet Lowers HbA1c, BMI Values in Diabetics 
