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By Suzanne Rostler
NEW YORK, Mar 19 (Reuters Health) - Bulking up on dietary fiber may help pregnant women with type 1 diabetes control potentially dangerous fluctuations in their blood sugar, new study findings suggest.
According to the report in the March issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, diabetic women who consumed the most dietary fiber during their second and third trimesters needed to inject themselves with less insulin. Specifically, women who consumed about 20 grams of fiber daily needed 16% to 18% less insulin than those who consumed only about 8 grams of fiber daily, regardless of weight and the duration and severity of their disease, findings show.
The results suggest that boosting intake of fiber-rich foods such as fruits, vegetables, oatmeal and bran cereal can help pregnant women with type 1 diabetes to reduce their reliance on insulin and stabilize their blood sugar.
"Knowing that diets rich in fiber may reduce insulin requirements will allow individuals to make appropriate adjustments in their insulin dose if they change the fiber content of their diet," Dr. Heidi Kalkwarf, the study's lead author, told Reuters Health.
Hyperglycemia occurs when sugar (glucose) in the blood rises to levels that over the long term can cause nerve damage, kidney disease and blindness. In pregnant women, hyperglycemia can lead to miscarriage, premature delivery and malformations of the baby, explained Kalkwarf, from Children's Hospital Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio.
People with type 1 diabetes do not produce enough insulin--the hormone responsible for clearing sugar from the blood and depositing it into cells throughout the body. To lower their risk of long-term medical complications, they must inject insulin several times a day.
It is not clear how fiber affects insulin sensitivity, but Kalkwarf suggests that it may increase secretion of important proteins involved in the metabolism of glucose (sugar). Fiber-rich diets have also been shown to lower the risk of other diseases such as cancer, heart disease and type 2 diabetes, which occurs when cells fail to respond to insulin. Current recommendations are to consume 25 to 35 grams of fiber daily.
SOURCE: Journal of the American Dietetic Association 2001;101:305-310.
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