Cutting Caffeine to Control Diabetes

Daily consumption of caffeine increases blood-sugar levels in people with Type 2 diabetes and may undermine patients' efforts to control the disease, according to a study from Duke University Medical Center.

Using a tiny glucose (sugar) monitor embedded under the abdominal skin, researchers were able to track the real-time impact of caffeine intake on glucose levels. The study, published in the journal Diabetes Care, revealed that when subjects con­sumed caffeine, average daily glucose levels went up by eight per cent. Caffeine also exaggerated the natural rise in blood glucose after meals, increasing levels by nine, 15 and 26 per cent after breakfast, lunch and dinner, respectively.

"Our study suggests one way to lower blood sugar is simply to quit drinking coffee or any other caffeinated beverages," says lead auth­or, James Lane. "It may not be easy, but it doesn't cost a dime, and there are no side effects."