Proponents of a high-carb, low/no-fat, vegan lifestyle (buzzword: “plant-based”) claim that  it will “cure” diabetes. However, this dietary lifestyle must be maintained or diabetes symptoms will return. Success is not promised unless you are totally “plant-based” (dietary vegan, with no eggs or dairy), eating only vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes with no sugar and no oil. The only fat permitted is that found naturally in whole foods such as avocados and olives. Does not restrict calories or carbohydrate intake.

Credit for graphic from http://www.kpao.org/2011/06/choose-a-vegan-plate-when-you-choosemyplateorg.html 

Approach	High-carb, Low/no-fat (Vegan)
Major Proponents	Weimar NEWSTART®, John McDougall, Neal Barnard, Caldwell Esselstyn (primarily heart disease not diabetes); ); earlier proponents include Dean Ornish, Robert Pritikin
Lifestyle Required	Strict vegan diet required (NO animal products)
Description	Weimar Program based on eight fundamental principles proven to help you achieve optimum health: Nutrition, Exercise, Water, Sunlight, Temperance, Air, Rest, and Trust. Nutrition is a vegan diet of unprocessed foods with no sugar and no oil. Requires walking a minimum of 5 miles (10,000 steps) every day. Does not restrict carbohydrate intake.
Rationale	Based on the premise that body fat causes insulin resistance, the rational is that this kind of diet (only vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes) promotes weight loss and helps to reverse insulin resistance.
Calories	Calories not restricted
Macronutrient Percentages	50-70% from complex carbohydrates, 10-20% from fat of vegetable origin, and 5-10% protein from vegetable origin
Carbohydrates	No restriction on amount of carbohydrates within allowed list of foods
Fats	No fats allowed if overweight. Once normal weight is achieved, may have small amounts of foods like avocados, olive, and nuts, but never any extracted oils like olive oil or coconut oil.
Protein (meat, eggs, dairy)	No animal flesh, eggs, or dairy products
Fiber	50-80 grams/day
Fruits	All whole fruits, avoid juice
Grains	Whole grains, avoid flours
Legumes	All beans, peas, and lentils
Vegetables	All vegetables allowed, especially starchy
Processed Foods	Avoid. Most should be whole foods.
Exercise	Weimar’s requirement is to walk 5 miles (10,000 steps) every day. In the McDougall Program, the only exercise required is “a nice daily walk.”
Water	8 glasses/day
Information & Resources	http://newstart.com/

References:

Diabetes Undone
An online video course from Life & Health
http://lifeandhealth.org/courses/diabetes-undone

Full Plate Diet
Plant-based, focus on fiber for “superfoods”
https://fullplateliving.org/diet

High-Carb, Low-Fat Diet For Diabetes
http://fanaticcook.blogspot.com/2011/01/high-carb-low-fat-diet-for-diabetes.html

Low-Fat, High-Carb Diets Reverse Insulin Resistance
http://www.medpagetoday.com/Columns/At-Large/31400

Reversing Diabetes: Carbs Are Good For You
Pritikin
https://www.pritikin.com/your-health/health-benefits/diabetes/418-reversing-diabetes-carbs-are-good-for-you.html#.VUwvoZO1tl0

Simple Care for Diabetes
McDougall approach
https://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2009nl/dec/diabetes.htm

The high-carbohydrate diet in diabetes management.
Abstract
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2830768

Vegan Diet Eases Nerve Pain of Diabetes
http://www.livescience.com/50957-vegan-diet-eases-nerve-pain-diabetes.html

The Raw Food Diet 101
https://getrawenergy.co/raw-food-diet-101/>

Can a Vegetarian Diet Help Type 2 Diabetes?
http://www.everydayhealth.com/type-2-diabetes/diet/can-a-vegetarian-diet-help/

Mastering Diabetes
A collaboration of “Forks Over Knives”
http://www.masteringdiabetes.org/

On-site Programs

These are mostly on-site programs, ranging from one day to multiple weeks. Most are not specific to diabetes but just mention diabetes as one of many physical ailments that their “lifestyle” program claims to help.

Complete Health Improvement Program (CHIP)
Developed by Hans Diehl, DrHSc, MPH, FACN, program founder and Clinical Professor of Preventative Medicine at Loma Linda University. Recommends adopting a whole-food plant-based eating pattern.
https://www.chiphealth.com/About-CHIP/about-chip/

Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes
Based on a low-fat, high-carb, vegan diet
http://www.nealbarnard.org/books/diabetes

NEWSTART® (Weimar Institute)
Based on “Eight Laws of Health,” with low-fat, high-carb, vegan diet. Not specifically for diabetes but general overall health.
http://www.newstart.com/program/

TakeTEN (St. Helena Medical Center)
10-day lifestyle medicine program that combines medicine, lifestyle, fitness, (vegan) nutrition, and health
https://www.adventisthealthtaketen.org/

The McDougall Program – Diabetes
Plant-food based diet and exercise
https://www.drmcdougall.com/health/education/health-science/hot-topics/medical-topics/diabetes/

Additional resources in Books, Movies, and Videos.

• Standard American Diet (SAD)
• American Diabetes Association (ADA)
• Low-carb, high-fat, moderate protein (LCHF)
• High-carb, low/no-fat, vegan (“plant-based”)
• What Can I Eat?
• Why Can’t I Eat Low-carb AND Low-fat?
• References to Diabetes Diets