25 Apr 2017 BANT Comments on the Daily Mail Article: ‘Could going low-carb help you fight off diabetes?
Today’s Daily Mail (Tuesday, 25th April 2017) featured an article entitled ‘Could going low-carb help you fight off diabetes?’. The article highlights the changing nutrition recommendations being made by a growing number medical and health practitioners from the Public Health England (PHE) Eatwell guide recommendations of starchy carbohydrates for sufferers of Type 2 Diabetes, to a very low carbohydrate regime. The British Association for Applied Nutrition and Nutritional Therapy (BANT) would like to highlight that, whilst it is still early days, recent scientific evidence does support this change in dietary recommendations.
BANT would like to caution, however, that obesity and diabetes are complex conditions and changes need to be established to engender a long-term cultural shift which allows healthy behaviour adaptations to an environment which offers so many opportunities for unhealthy indulgence either knowingly or in ignorance. BANT practitioners do not suggest ‘one-size-fits-all’ advice following the health trend of the moment or out-dated population based recommendations, but take into account individuality that enables personalisation of dietary advice based on the most up-to-date research available.
BANT is very much aware that much of the advice and information issued regarding the nation’s health and what we should be eating is confusing and often conflicting. It can be difficult for the public to navigate and interpret the information available, especially in the light of Public Health England’s admission that the Eatwell guide is a food selection tool that has been designed to cover the population as a whole which does not take into account individual health and weight profiles.
BANT experts have carefully developed a set of Wellbeing Guidelines, based on the latest science and research in the field of nutrition for optimal health. The BANT Wellbeing Guidelines were specifically designed to provide clear, concise, easy to understand information for the general public, avoiding out-dated information and research, and addressing some of the most common health concerns. The most common reasons people seek nutritional advice is to address weight loss and/ or for general health and wellbeing. These issues are addressed by BANT with the following:
The, clear, concise format of the BANT Wellbeing Guidelines enables people to see easily what food choices they should be making. More detailed information is also given to guide people in how to make these choices and which other lifestyle factors they should be addressing.
Key advice provided by the BANT Wellbeing Guidelines includes the following:
- Eat a Rainbow: a varied diet of 7 differently coloured fruit and vegetables per day.
- Stay hydrated with water, herbal teas, green and black teas. Avoid alcohol, sugary drinks and too much caffeine
- Ensure protein is lean: fish, poultry, eggs and vegetable sources. Limit red and processed meat.
- Include healthy fats: avocados, nuts, olive oil. Cook with healthy saturated fats: coconut oil and butter.
- Choose root vegetables and whole grains instead of refined carbohydrates and grains: Eat sparingly.
- For Weight Loss: include exercise, limit portion sizes, don’t eat between meals. Avoid: Sugar, artificial sweeteners, alcohol and refined carbohydrates.
- Include the right supplements: vitamin D, in particular, for most people and probiotics as advised by your Registered Nutritional Therapist
- Sleep and Exercise are an important aspect in overall Health and Wellbeing and Weight Management.
Looking for a BANT Registered Nutritional Therapist is easy; just click on the link for a full listing of our Registered Nutritional Therapists area by area: https://practitioner-search.bant.org.uk/.
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Daniel O’Shaughnessy
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NOTES TO EDITORS:
The British Association for Applied Nutrition and Nutritional Therapy (BANT) is the professional body for Registered Nutritional Therapists. Its primary function is to assist its members in attaining the highest standards of integrity, knowledge, competence and professional practice, in order to protect the client’s interests; nutritional therapy and the registered nutritional therapist.
Nutritional therapy is the application of nutrition science in the promotion of health, peak performance and individual care. It is a progressive approach to health optimisation. Registered Nutritional Therapists are recognised by the Professional Standards Authority to be as competent as other traditional healthcare providers. It has been recognised that they can make a difference by working together with healthcare providers as part of multidisciplinary teams under NHS commissioning.
