Effects of low-carbohydrate diet on preferential abdominal fat loss for 6 months in type 2 diabetes - Effects of low-carbohydrate diet on abdominal fat distribution in type 2 diabetes

The patients showed good compliance with the LCD (1812 +/- 375 kcal/day, % carbo-hydrate:fat:protein = 35:40:19 for men; 1706 +/- 323 kcal/day, % carbohydrate:fat:protein = 41:36:21 for women). Significant decreases (P = 0.05) in BMI and HbA1c levels were observed, along with an increase in HDL-C (P = 0.021) in men and a decrease in LDL-C (P = 0.001) in women. VAT (21.6 cm2, P < 0.001 in men;19.6 cm2;, P < 0.001 in women) and SAT (13.5 cm2, P = 0.004 in men;19.1 cm2, P = 0.003 in women) significantly decreased. The loss of VAT (%deltaVAT) was greater than that of SAT (%deltaSAT) in women (P = 0.022). A similar but not significant predominance of VAT loss was detected in men (P = 0.111). In women, the %deltaSAT significantly correlated with changes in FBG (deltaFBG) (r = 0.417) and HDL-C (deltaHDL) (r = 0.720), as was %deltaVAT with changes in triglyceride (deltaTG) (r = 0.591).