The Study
5-Year effects of a novel continuous remote care model with carbohydrate-restricted nutrition therapy including nutritional ketosis in type 2 diabetes: An extension study.
This study watched a group of people who chose to follow a special diet and get coaching over five years and saw that many felt better and needed less medicine. But because they picked themselves to join, we can't say for sure the diet caused the improvement — maybe they were just more motivated to get healthy in other ways too.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
People with type 2 diabetes followed a low-carb diet and got daily coaching through an app for five years.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 563 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes — these changes mean many people could stop insulin and other meds, lose weight, and reduce heart disease risk without surgery.
- 220% stopped all diabetes meds and had normal blood sugar; 32.5% only needed metformin; weight dropped 7.6%; bad fats went down 18.4%, good fats went up 17.4%; inflammation dropped 43.6%.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Diabetes research and clinical practice
Year
2024
Authors
Amy L. McKenzie, Shaminie J. Athinarayanan, Michelle R. Van Tieghem, Brittanie M. Volk, C. Roberts, Rebecca N Adams, Jeff S Volek, S. Phinney, Sarah J Hallberg
Related Content
Claims (6)
In a five-year remote care program using a very low carbohydrate diet, 32.5% of adults with type 2 diabetes reached HbA1c levels below 6.5% while using only metformin or no diabetes medication.
Among adults with type 2 diabetes, a five-year remote care program using very low carbohydrate nutrition therapy resulted in a 7.6% reduction in body weight that was maintained without significant weight regain.
Among adults with type 2 diabetes who followed a continuous remote care program with very low carbohydrate nutrition for five years, triglyceride levels dropped by 18.4% and HDL cholesterol rose by 17.4%, while LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol did not change.
Among adults with established type 2 diabetes, a remote care program using a very low carbohydrate diet, nutritional ketosis, and telemedicine coaching was linked to 20% of participants achieving diabetes remission after five years, defined as HbA1c below 6.5% without medication for at least three months.
Among adults with type 2 diabetes, a five-year remote care program using very low carbohydrate nutrition therapy was linked to a 40% lower medication effect score and reduced use of insulin, sulfonylureas, and SGLT2 inhibitors.
Adults with type 2 diabetes who followed a continuous remote care program with very low carbohydrate nutrition for five years had a 43.6% reduction in high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and a 9.7% reduction in white blood cell count, indicating lower levels of systemic inflammation.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.