A research study looked at the impact of a 1-week low-carbohydrate diet on increasing insulin sensitivity and vascular function in type 1 diabetes. Insulin is a hormone that controls blood glucose, but when it is given subcutaneously instead of endogenously released from the pancreas, it tends to build up in the blood and thus increase risks such as making the body less responsive to insulin and creating harmful effects on vascular health.
The study involved 12 adults with type 1 diabetes. Each participant had two different diets for one week—one with a normal carbohydrate level and the other with reduced carbs. They had a break between the two diets. The researchers then measured how well their bodies used insulin and how healthy their blood vessels were.
The results showed that while the low-carb diet cut insulin doses by 16%, it did not help make their bodies use insulin better. It also did not help make their blood vessels work better. The researchers had hoped that cutting the level of insulin in the blood would enhance these measures, but that didn’t occur. One theory is that how insulin was being administered overnight balanced out the help of the diet.
Surprisingly, it was discovered that the low-carb diet produced a slight increase in certain markers of inflammation in the body. The difference observed was not significant enough to justify making any conclusions. Overall, the results of this study suggest that a short-term decrease in carbohydrate consumption is not enough to decrease insulin sensitivity and vascular well-being significantly in type 1 diabetic patients. Diabetes is a multifaceted disease, and other treatments might be required to mitigate the risk of cardiovascular disease and other complications. Further studies are required to explore different ways of increasing insulin sensitivity and overall well-being in type 1 diabetic patients.
Source: cardiab.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12933-025-02658-z
