Since medifast is a low carb / high protein diet based on a low glycemic index and putting your body in ketosis, it's reasonable to wonder if this diet is appropriate for people with diabetes. The answer is yes. In fact, the plan has a specific program that is just for diabetics, and is backed by a pretty impressive research study from John Hopkins University. This article will give an overview of the program and will discuss why I believe it is a very viable (and much less painful) option than other diabetic diets I have previously tried.
Why Diabetic Diets Often Fail: If there is any good news for people with diabetes, it's that keeping as close as possible to our ideal weight can drastically improve our condition. Weight loss can even decrease, or in some dramatic cases, cease your need for insulin.
The bad news is that the diabetes diets that will give you these kinds of dramatic results are typically extremely restrictive and very hard to stick with. They basically force you to cut out all desserts, snacks, carbs, and sugars while meticulously calculating and recording every thing you put into your mouth. I know from experience this is a dismal existence which I wanted to abandon pretty quickly.
Medifast For Diabetes Overview: This diet (which is endorsed by celebrities Genie Francis and Kristy Swanson) is a meal replacement program, which in my opinion is a huge plus. Basically, you eat six times per day . You'll eat five of the company's meals and one "lean and green meal" that you make yourself. These foods are very glycemic friendly and low in carbs while being high in protein. And, because you're eating so often, your blood sugar stays stable and strong.
I believe that the best thing about this diet is that the food choices are filled with carb and snack like foods, like shakes, pudding, crackers, bars, oatmeal, and cappuccino, to name only a few. (There are over 70 choices.) But, even though they do not taste like it, these are safe choices which fool you into thinking that you are eating normally. The food tastes pretty decent as well.
In my experience, once you start to see results, this diet is very easy to embrace and stick with. Most of the foods are grab and go, so the company has really done a lot of the work for you. I have enough to worry about without having to meticulously measure and calculate my foods or worry about preparing elaborate meals.
The Medifast John Hopkins Study: There's a pretty well known John Hopkins study which indicated that people with diabetes on the medifast diet lost twice as much weight and complied with their diets twice as often as people on the ADA (American Diabetes Association) diet. The average weight loss was 45 pounds, and some of the dieters lost as much as 65-80 pounds. I've been on both of these diets, have lost almost 80 pounds on Genie Francis' diet, and found the ADA version pretty dreadful, so these results do not surprise me at all.
To learn more about medifast for diabetes or to read the John Hopkins study, click here. For a free copy of the "Getting The Most Out Of Medifast" e-book, click here.
