Comparison of unmeasured versus exchange diabetic diets in lean adults. Body weight and feeding patterns in a 2-year prospective pilot study.

Thirty insulin-treated adult diabetic outpatients, within normal weight for at least 5 years, were instructed either on an unmeasured diet with the single restriction of simple sugars, or on a weight maintenance, caloric defined, exchange type American Diabetes Association diet. During the next 2 years, both groups reported similar caloric intakes, food composition, and distribution, which were remarkably close to the calculated ideals. Both groups kept body weights within normal limits. There was no difference in insulin doses or serum cholesterol. Fasting glycemia was higher, triglycerides lower, and hypoglycemic reactions less frequent in the group on the unmeasured diet. These differences were not significant. It is suggested that normal weight diabetics spontaneously regulate their intake to maintain a constant weight regardless of precise degree of glycemia control or insulin dosage.