While most physicians recommend polyphenols to lower your risk of heart disease, researchers from Spain say there’s a new reason to eat up–it could help control your blood sugar.
The research, led by Dr. Lutgardo Bozzetto from the University of Naples, reveals that people who ate a diet rich in polyphenols significantly improved their glucose metabolism, especially if they faced a higher risk of diabetes or heart disease.
The findings were presented at the European Atherosclerosis Society 2014 Congress in Madrid, Spain.
“It’s a diet that is realistic for these high-risk patients,” says Bozzetto. “Rather than wait until the patient is diagnosed with the metabolic disease, a diet rich in polyphenols could be used as a preventive strategy.”
In the study, Bozzetto recruited 45 patients to try one of four diets: A diet low in omega-3 fatty acids and polyphenols, a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids, a diet rich in polyphenols, or a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids and polyphenols. At the beginning of the study, all of the patients were described as having a body mass index over 30–something considered clinically obese.
However, that changed as the study progressed. According to her findings, those who ate a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids lost the most weight, although their blood glucose did not show significant improvements. Those who ate a diet rich in polyphenols did see significant decreases in blood glucose, however, suggesting that it may help control this.
She also found that beta-cell function improved among those who ate a diet rich in polyphenols, regardless of how much omega-3 fatty acids they consumed–which in turn improved the rate of glucose absorption.
To Bozzetto, these findings could pave the way to treating diabetes in the future–naturally.
“This particular mechanism of action with polyphenols is similar to drugs used in the treatment of diabetes,” says Bozzetto. “The present study is small and of short duration. Larger trials with longer follow-up will be needed to validate these findings.”
While researchers aren’t currently making any recommendations about how much polyphenols people should consume, experts say it couldn’t hurt to add more to your diet. Previous studies have found that polyphenols help improve heart health and may even improve weight loss–though the exact mechanisms behind this are still being investigated.
What You Should Do
Want to reduce your risk of diabetes? Then it’s time to add polyphenols to your diet–something you’ll find in olive oil, grape seed extract, green tea, and even dark chocolate. Be wary of how much you eat, however–eating too many calories can make you gain weight and increase your diabetes risk, regardless of which foods you eat.
Readers: Do you try to make sure to eat foods containing antioxidants such as polyphenols? Why or why not?
Sources:
Chocolate? Coffee? Diet Rich in Polyphenols Improves Glucose Metabolism – Medscape.com
Diet Rich in Plant Antioxidants Helps Blood Sugar [STUDY] – WebMD.com
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