Eating for LADA, Not for Type 2
Reviewed by CDE Mehandi Sharma · Updated
Most diabetes eating advice in India is written for Type 2 diabetes, and it assumes one thing: that you have weight to lose and insulin resistance to reduce. In LADA that assumption is frequently wrong.
People with LADA are often lean at diagnosis. In one Indian case series the average build was slim, with a BMI around 22.6. The problem is not that insulin is being ignored by your body; it is that there is not enough of it.
This changes the priorities.
- Cutting calories hard is usually the wrong goal. If you are already lean, weight loss is a warning sign, not an achievement.
- Managing carbohydrate still matters a great deal, because carbohydrate is what raises blood sugar and your insulin supply is limited.
- Protein and overall adequacy matter more than in Type 2 — you need to hold your weight and muscle.
- Consistency of timing and portions matters more too, because your body has less spare insulin to absorb an unusual meal.
The distinction is easy to state and easy to get wrong in practice, because the advice sounds so similar. Both plans reduce refined carbohydrate. Only one is trying to shrink you.
If you have been told to lose weight for your diabetes and you are already slim, that is worth raising directly. It may be advice written for a diagnosis you do not have.
The practical shape of the plate is covered in carbohydrates and the Indian plate.