The Atkin's Diet and other high protein diets, limit you to approximately 30 grams of carbohydrates daily and you eat protein foods in place of carbohydrates you usually eat.  After about 48 hours of low carbohydrates, the sugar stored in muscles is depleted, and the body will begin to burn fat for fuel.  Burning fat is what you want to lose weight. 

Furthermore, if you are type II diabetic your blood sugar may drop because you are strictly limiting carbohydrates.  When you resume eating a diet that is not a high protein diet, your blood sugar will likely rise to your normal diabetic level.   

A diabetic’s metabolism is inefficient.  A diabetic has inefficient protein, fat, and carbohydrate metabolism.  Skeletal muscle is active in degradation of certain amino acids as well as in the synthesis of others.  Amino acids are what build protein in the body.  Some of the amino acids that muscle breakdown are leucine, isoleucine, and valine, essential amino acids you must get from your diet and referred to as branched chain amino acids (BCAAs).  From Harper's Biochemistry 25th Edition, "The capacity of muscles to degrade branched chain amino acids increases three- to fivefold during fasting and in diabetes (Ref. Robert K. Murray, MD, Ph.D., Daryl K. Granmer, MD, Peter A. Mayes, Ph.D., D.Sc., Victor W. Fodwell, Ph.D., Harper’s Biochemistry, 25^th Edition, Appleton & Lance, Stanford, Connecticut, 2000, Page 733).  A diabetic's body is breaking down the BCAA's (amino acids) a lot faster than synthesizing them, which results in higher levels of waste products and more strain on the kidney and liver. 

The breakdown of protein results in nitrogen as a byproduct.  This nitrogen is processed by the body and eliminated in the urea cycle.  The kidney and liver help regulate the urea cycle.  One of the major side effects in diabetes is kidney problems.  Thus increasing the load of proteins you eat, from a high protein diet, is potentially straining the kidneys.  The increase of nitrogen results in an increase of acid in the bloodstream, which alters your pH.  Your pH level is the balance of acid in your bloodstream and pH needs to be at specific levels to properly run your body.  When pH levels become more acid than they should, this leads to another problem diabetics often have, which is dehydration.  Dehydration results in problems with electrolytes (which interferes with many aspects of the body running properly) increases overall stress to the body, can lead to frequent urination, and many other stresses.   

The following is from Optimum Sports Nutrition, written by one of the leading nutritional scientists the past three decades, Dr. Michael Colgan.  "When excess protein food breaks down during digestion, it fills your blood with more than the amino acids that make it up.  Excess amino acids are converted into non-toxic carbon dioxide and water plus highly toxic ammonia.  Your body immediately protects itself by turning the ammonia into less toxic urea, which is then excreted by the kidneys.   If you eat protein beyond their capacity to remove the toxic wastes, you overload the kidneys and poison your blood.  Chronic elevated urea is literally a pain in the butt.  Inflamed kidneys generate a lot of low back pain, and general feelings of malaise.  And unless your levels are really high, you will come out clean on all the expensive tests your physician decrees." 

It would seem dangerous for a diabetic to attempt to treat their disease by using a high protein diet.  Kidney disease, dehydration, and other problems can result from excessive protein.  In addition, once you stop the Atkins diet and start eating carbohydrates, your blood sugar will likely start to rise again.  Diabetes is a disease of inefficient insulin or your insulin does not work at all, and simply changing your diet for a time will not cure diabetes. 

We advise, on this web site, low glycemic carbohydrates. We recommend not more than 100 grams a day of complex carbohydrates.  We advise about equal amounts of carbohydrates and protein, but we recommend most of your additional protein be protein supplements, such as ion-exchange whey protein concentrate and soy powder.  Check out the article, "Type I & II Diabetics Need Extra Protein," for more information. 

The following information is to help deal with the problems of inefficient protein metabolism in diabetics.  This information is to help all diabetics, the ones who eat usual amounts of protein and the ones who eat high amounts. 

Dr. Bob was a MD internal medicine, orthomolecular doctor, MD psychiatrist, chiropractor, and healer 65 years.  He was a diabetic who lived to 108 years with only 1 side effect 2 years before he passed away.  Dr. Bob practiced a system of medicine called orthomolecular medicine.  It is a system of medicine that uses mainly natural substances that are non-toxic and safe in wide range of doses.  It uses mainly herbs and minerals/vitamins. 

1.      Dr. Bob advised 12 or more glasses of distilled water a day for diabetics.  Diabetics need more water then people with normal metabolism, because they need to help dilute the urine to help process ammonia by the kidneys.  The extra water will help decrease strain on the kidneys and help with hydration.  One of the symptoms of diabetes is dehydration.

2.      Supplement BCAAs.  Since diabetics lose 3-5 times more BCAA then those with normal metabolism, it seems an excellent idea to replace them.  Once again from Dr. Michael Colgan, "Studies suggest that eating BCAA easily increases blood levels (page 163)."  So BCAA supplementation may be considered sensible insurance for diabetics.  Dr. Colgan recommends the supplement HMB for your BCAA.  Whey protein powder also contains BCAAs.  Dr. Bob recommended 1-2 grams of HMB, twice a day, for diabetics.  He recommended HMB, with a meal that contained protein, 1-3 hours after a workout or walk, and one other time with a meal with protein.  If you did not workout, then he advised HMB twice a day for diabetics.

3.      Dr. Bob advised supplementing protein with 2 parts ion-exchange whey protein concentrate and 1 part soy powder.  Dr. Bob included the soy because it has many beneficial effects for diabetics such as, can improve thyroid, can help lower cholesterol, provides protein, and many other benefits.  He included whey because of its high quality protein; it helps boost the immune system, and many other beneficial effects. The body is constantly breaking down and synthesizing protein and amino acids, and protein needs to be replaced by nutrition.  Whey concentrate is a high quality protein supplement, about 98 percent efficient.  Meat, fowl, and poultry are about 80 per cent high quality protein (high quality-means the amount of essential amino acids supplied).  Dr. Colgan explains, "During evolution humans developed the separate gut system to absorb dipeptides and tripeptides (amino acids, the building blocks of protein, linked together as two or three amino acid bonds) for very special reasons.  When two or more aminos are joined together they carry information.  That information causes physiological responses that do not occur to single (information-less) aminos."  One important point is the separate gut system.  The separate gut system bypasses normal digestion and therefore spares many of the processes of digestion.  This will lead to less toxic waste products, making protein supplementation with whey and soy more efficient and a far less strain on the kidneys.  Also has described, whey powder, which contains amino acids linked together as two or three amino acid bonds, carries information, which makes the amino acids help the body work more efficiently.  In a diabetic, with poor metabolism, with possible high acid levels in the bloodstream, possible problems with digestive enzymes, and so on, a protein supplement may be the most efficient way to get your protein.

4.      Dr. Bob advised digestive enzymes.  There is an entire method to use digestive enzymes properly and you can find the information in the article, "Control of Blood Sugar is Only Part of the Story – Type I & II Diabetics need to Increase the Efficiency of the Pancreas."  Digestive enzymes can help break down protein, fats, and carbohydrates.  Improving digestion can help a diabetic in many ways, such as helping to digest protein properly, helping to maintain proper pH levels, helping stop dehydration, decreasing strain on the kidneys and liver, and helping with many other stresses from diabetes.

5.      Dr. Bob advised diabetics use supplements that can scavenge ammonia, helping to keep ammonia levels lower.  The supplements Dr. Bob recommended were a. KIC b. OKG.  These two supplements are also recommended by Dr. Colgan to scavenge ammonia.  Dr. Michael Colgan, "alpha-ketoglutarate acts in the body as an ammonia scavenger.  Ornithine also acts as an ammonia scavenger.  The combination of the two (OKG) is a potent way to reduce your ammonia burden (Page 377)."  Furthermore, OKG spares muscles the need to break down their BCAAs in order to generate glutamine, an important energy fuel.  The glutamine is generated when Alpha-Ketoglutarate combines with ammonia released during intense muscle activity.  Also the ammonia scavenging property of AKG is doubly beneficial because excess free ammonia can be harmful.  Dr. Colgan on ketoisocaproate, "Studies on patients who have been put into a high catabolic, high ammonia condition by surgery or disease, show that ketoisoaproate acts as a strong ammonia scavenger." Page 380)."  So AKG can help produce glutamine and scavenge ammonia.

6.      Dr. Bob advised a multivitamin and mineral in every nutritional protocol.  He advised the brand Maxilife powder because he liked the quality and doses.  Every nutritional protocol requires cofactors and a multi provides them.

7.      Dr. Bob advised vitamin B-6, a vital B vitamin involved in protein metabolism.  If you are deficient vitamin B6, this can interfere with proper metabolism of protein.  From Optimum Sports Nutrition, "The Nationwide Food Consumption Survey found that pyridoxine (B-6) intake is deficient in 33% of households."  Remember diabetics, your metabolism is less efficient and deficiencies and insufficiencies are more likely than for normal metabolism.   You can consult with your doctor and test for vitamin B6 deficiency, as well as testing other mineral and vitamin levels.

8.      Dr. Bob advised 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda (bicarbonate) mixed in liquid 45 minutes after you have started a meal.  Proper digestion requires an alkaline environment in the small intestine.  The stomach produces acid. When food enters the small intestine the acid from the stomach enters also.  The bicarb neutralizes the acid.  This can help digestive enzymes work properly (they cannot function optimally or may not function at all – when the small intestine is acidic, not alkaline).  

In conclusion, diabetics need to focus on proper metabolism of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates.  You need to aware of the problems associated with poor metabolism of protein, as well as the problems associated with high blood sugar.  Also, be aware that high protein diets for diabetics, especially when increasing meat proteins, can result in stress and breakdown in the body.  Good luck.   

Note – Some proteins produce less toxic waste – remember to consider whey and soy powder, as part of the protein you consume each day.

Note – In order for these anti-aging ideas to be successful, you must use supplements of the highest quality. Dr. Bob often said, "almost all supplement companies produce poor quality." You can consider the product page of this web site. Almost all the products met Dr. Bob’s approval. Since he passed away we have attempted to keep the same high standards.

WARNING:  DO NOT STOP ANY TREATMENT OR MEDICATION YOU CURRENTLY USE.  CONSULT WITH YOUR DOCTOR BEFORE STARTING THE USE OF SUPPLEMENTS. 

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