A diet that is healthy for a person may be junk food for another

A diet that is healthy for a person may be junk food for another

We have all wondered why some people do not seem to gain weight, while others do. A new study has found that even if we all ate the same meal, we would all burn it differently and have different blood sugar levels later. These findings draw attention to personalized nutrition.

Eran Elinav, MD, PhD, Weizmann Institute of Science said, "Each human being has a unique response to the food he or she consumes.  We need to look at individual responses. Our research shifts our view from this one-size-fits-all dietary approach to a personalized dietary approach and regimen."

High blood sugar levels are associated with several diseases including obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer and strokes.

Blood sugar levels of 800 individuals of varying weights continuously were monitored with a glucose monitor for over a week as they ate nearly 47,000 meals. Some had prediabetes. The study subjects used a smartphone app to log when they slept, exercised, and ate. Stool samples were also taken to analyze gut microbiome.

The study revealed a vast variability in the responses to even identical meals. Some people who ate bread did not show any variation in blood sugar levels, while others had high blood sugar with the same meal. Eran Segal, PhD, another researcher who worked on the study noted that one prediabetic obese woman had a blood sugar spike when she ate a tomato, which is a healthy food. The researchers next examined if personalizing the diet improved blood sugar levels for 26 people. The personalized diets reduced the blood sugar levels after meals and altered their gut bacteria. (Medscape)