5 2 diet results - Is the 5:2 benefit for diabetics?

Fasting for two days a week could help people with diabetes lose weight and control their blood sugar levels just as effectively as dieting every day, a study claims.

Experts suggest people could benefit from a 5:2 diet in which they eat normally for five days a week then limit themselves to 600 calories or less for the remaning two.

A small world-first study by scientists at the University of South Australia claims the diet could work just as well as limiting calorie intake seven days a week.

Losing weight is important in tackling type 2 diabetes, which affects millions of adults worldwide and is often linked to being overweight.

Changing diet is a common method of treating the condition because it is made worse by eating a lot of calories and fatty or sugary foods.

Fasting on two days – but not in a row – could be easier for people than limiting what they eat every day, so may have a better chance of success, the researchers say.

Diabetes costs an estimated £512 billion (US$673bn) a year in healthcare, according to the study's researchers, and is a 'health epidemic'.

Around 3.7 million people in the UK have been diagnosed with diabetes, plus 30 million Americans and 1.7 million Australians.

People with type 2 diabetes are encouraged to eat a healthy, balanced diet to help prevent their blood sugar from getting too high.

Being overweight linked to diabetes so doctors advise diet changes 

And patients are also advised to control how much they eat, in order to help them lose weight – obesity is a major risk factor for the condition and the two are often linked. 

A build-up of fat in the liver can make it less effective at controlling crucial blood sugar levels and make the body more resistant to insulin – the cause of diabetes.

But sticking to a restricted diet for seven days a week can be difficult and people who cannot stick to one might risk making their condition worse.

Now, scientists suggest people could eat what they want for five days and eat very little at all for the other two.

Seven day dieting and 5:2 fasting both improve blood glucose 

In a study which compared those on the 5:2 diet to one which limited them to 1,200 or 1,500 calories a day found people in both groups lost weight and improved their blood glucose control.

On fasting days the group on the 5:2 diet were only allowed to eat 500-600 calories, but they were not restricted on the other five days.

'Diabetes is the 21st century's health epidemic' 

Professor Peter Clifton, who worked on the study said: 'Diabetes is the 21st century's health epidemic and the biggest challenge confronting Australia's health system.

'Conventional weight-loss diets with daily energy restrictions are difficult for people to adhere to so we must look for alternative solutions.'

While fasting is safe for people with diabetes they control with their diet, people on insulin medication should take more care and consult their doctor.

The study looked at 137 Australian adults with type 2 diabetes, who had an average age of 60 and an average Body Mass Index (BMI) of 38 – indicating they were obese.

Scientists monitored the people for a year and measured their body mass and blood glucose levels to compare with their diets.