Optimized Carbohydrate Diet May Improve Glycaemic Stability in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes

Strategic Insights -

A new research study has been initiated to investigate the effects of an optimized carbohydrate diet on patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). The study, led by Jingyi Guo at the Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital, aims to explore whether adjusting the composition of dietary carbohydrates can provide multiple metabolic benefits for patients with T2D. The research is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, Shanghai Research Center for Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Shenzhen Medical Research Special Project, and Distinguished Young Scholars of the National Natural Science Foundation of China.

Key Takeaways:

  • The study will include 150 participants with T2D who will be assigned to either a conventional diet following the guidelines for T2D or an optimized carbohydrate diet focused on increasing resistant starch intake to 40 g/day and decreasing rapidly digestible starch intake for 12 weeks.
  • The primary outcome of the study is the difference in the change of postprandial glycaemia (changes in the average incremental area under the blood glucose curve (iAUC)) induced by the optimized carbohydrate diet and conventional diet interventions.
  • Secondary outcomes include changes in other glucose and lipid metabolism-related parameters, as well as cognitive function, psychological, behavioral, and physiological factors.
  • Exploratory outcomes include changes in the iAUCs for each of the three meals, appetite-related hormone levels, degree of hepatic steatosis, serum cytokines, immune functions, and multiomics parameters.
  • The research has received approval from the Ethics Committee of Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital and has been registered with the ClinicalTrials.gov Registry (NCT06936657).

Statistics:

  • 150 participants with T2D will be included in the study.
  • The optimized carbohydrate diet will increase resistant starch intake to 40 g/day and decrease rapidly digestible starch intake.
  • The study will last for 28 weeks, including a 12-week intervention period and a 6-week wash-out period.
  • The primary outcome, change in postprandial glycaemia (iAUC), will be measured using blood glucose curve data.

Sources:

  • NewsRx (2025, October 20). Findings from Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital in Type 2 Diabetes Reported (Intervention effects of optimised carbohydrate diet in patients with type 2 diabetes: study protocol for a randomised controlled crossover trial). Clinical Trials Week, 154.
  • BMJ Open (2025, 15(10)). Intervention effects of optimised carbohydrate diet in patients with type 2 diabetes: study protocol for a randomised controlled crossover trial.