Time-Restricted Eating Lowers Blood Sugar in Adults With Type 1 Diabetes Without Raising Safety Risks
核心洞察
A six-month randomized controlled trial of 32 adults found time-restricted eating reduced HbA1c by about 0.5% on average, outperforming a calorie-restriction group in blood sugar control.
The study represents the first investigation of intermittent fasting in people with Type 1 diabetes (搜索), led by kinesiology and nutrition professor Krista Varady (搜索) at UIC.
Time-restricted eating did not increase the risk of severe high or low blood sugar or diabetic ketoacidosis (搜索), suggesting the approach may be safe for this population.
For adults with Type 1 diabetes (搜索), limiting food intake to a set eight-hour period each day may offer another way to manage blood sugar without counting calories. A University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) study led by kinesiology and nutrition professor Krista Varady (搜索) found that time-restricted eating may be both safe and effective for blood sugar control in this population.
"This is the first study to examine the effects of intermittent fasting on people with Type 1 diabetes (搜索), and the results are extremely promising," said Varady, a leading expert on intermittent fasting who conducted some of the first human studies on the subject.
Trial Design and Patient Population
Type 1 diabetes (搜索) is a chronic condition in which the body produces little or no insulin, affecting less than 1% of people in the U.S. Varady recruited adults who had Type 1 diabetes and were also classified as obese under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's body mass index criteria. According to Varady, this group represents about 0.5% of the total U.S. population.
The researchers randomly assigned 32 participants from the Chicago area to follow one of three approaches for six months. One group practiced time-restricted eating, consuming food only between noon and 8 p.m. without counting calories. Another reduced calorie intake by 25%, while a control group made no behavioral changes.
Blood Sugar Improved Without More Emergencies
At the end of six months, the time-restricted eating group had lower blood sugar levels than the calorie-counting group. Their HbA1c results decreased by about 0.5% on average. Notably, while body weight did not change among the time-restricted eating and calorie-restriction groups compared to the control group, blood sugar levels were significantly reduced for the time-restricted eating group compared to the calorie-restriction group.
The eating schedule also did not raise the risk of extremely high or low blood sugar or diabetic ketoacidosis (搜索) — a life-threatening condition caused by insufficient insulin in the body.
"This is the first step to showing time-restricted eating could be a safe, potentially effective method for people with Type 1 diabetes (搜索) to manage their blood sugar levels," Varady said.
Clinical Implications and Next Steps
The primary motivation behind the study was to fill a longstanding knowledge gap regarding how intermittent fasting helps Type 1 diabetes (搜索). The findings position time-restricted eating as a potential non-prescription strategy for blood sugar management in this patient group.
"Of course, this is just the first step," Varady said. "Anyone making changes to their eating habits, especially those with diabetes, must work closely with their endocrinologist or healthcare provider to find a solution that works for them."
Varady now hopes to test the findings in larger studies conducted across multiple sites to determine whether the results hold more broadly. The study, titled "Efficacy and Safety of Time-Restricted Eating in Adults With Type 1 Diabetes (搜索): A Randomized Controlled Trial," was published in Diabetes Care.