Why diabetics should consume carbohydrates towards the end of the meal

Researchers urge diabetes patients to consume bread at the end of the meal after a new study found it helps to keep their blood sugar under control.

Type 2 diabetes can cause heart failure, blindness, kidney disease and leg amputations. That is why it is important to control blood sugar levels to reduce such complications.

Because carbohydrates cause a spike in blood sugar levels in patients, many avoid this food group all together. However, Weill Cornell Medicine researchers found eating pasta or bread towards the end of the meal helps control the spike, according to a report by the Daily Mail. Consuming vegetables and meat first, helps such patients from consuming a lot of carbs. This helps cause less of a spike.

Researchers discovered this in the study where 16 type 2 diabetes patients ate the same meal at three different times and order. Bread, chicken, salad and orange juice were the items, the report revealed.

Researchers found when the participants at the carbs at the end, their "post-meal blood glucose levels were about half as high as when they ate carbs first".

"Eating carbohydrates last may be a simple strategy for regulating post-meal glucose levels, " lead author Dr Alpana Shukla told the Daily Mail. Adding, "We all recognize that while it’s good to eat less carbs to control blood sugar levels, it may sometimes be difficult to follow this advice."

The study was originally published in the BMJ Open Diabetes Research and Care.