Hi Kevin - The fact is that TWO studies (the Reykjavik study and the Swedish study, both of which I quoted in my posting of 3/13/2005 earlier in this thread) concluded that people with Dupuytren's are on average thinner than people of similar age without Dupuytren's. This doesn't seem to me a red herring, but an interesting fact which any theory about Dupuytren's needs to explain.

Hi Sheri - If my speculation is correct that the development of Dupuytren's nodules is in some way connected with excessive blood sugar, then a diet that would help (or at least not aggravate) Dupuytren's would be one that prevented the level of sugar in the blood from surging too high. Although type 1 diabetes cannot be cured with diet, is it not true that even with type 1 diabetes there are certain things which will increase the need for insulin and other things which will decrease it? My guess is that any regime that decreases the need for insulin will also be helpful for Dupuytren's. However, I must emphasise that I am not an expert on diabetes - don't do anything that your doctor doesn't advise!

Correction, my brother in-law is not obese, he works out regularly, but all other family members fall into that category.

Anon

Hi,

I'm still having a hard time buying the fat/thin issue. I leaning towards the belief that Icelanders get more excersise and eat less processed foods therefore are thinner/leaner.

Anon

I'll just repeat what I said earlier, I think fat OR thin people can develop dupuytren's, and/or have a disorder in their insulin/glucose metabolism.

If the theory presented in my website is correct, then for most folks, the real issue is their INSULIN RESISTANCE rather than the actual amount of insulin or glucose floating around in their systems. (Although I do agree that excess glucose can cause all kinds of problems, and might be a co-factor in the progression of dupuytren's.) And for those folks who are type I diabetics, their issue would be LOW levels of insulin.

In the big picture, it is the amount of insulin AT THE CELLULAR LEVEL that matters! If the person is insulin resistant, then they will have low amounts of insulin at the cellular level, and Type I diabetics will often have occasional low levels of insulin at some point between their injections.

(People in northern climates tend to drink a lot of alcohol... perhaps that was many people in the Iceland study were described as thin... I've noticed that quite often alcoholcs can be very thin.)

Without the luxury of doing more study on those persons in the Iceland study to prove and or disprove the various theories being presented here on this board, I don't think we are going to arrive at any real definitive conclusions.

Sheri G - Reading around a bit further I notice that some diabetics have reported good results using the paleo diet (a diet that avoids grains, beans, potatoes, dairy, sugar, much like the one I am trying at the moment: see www.paleodiet.com). One writes: "As a Type I diabetic for 20 years I have been dieting a long time. For the past 9 months I have been on your diet. I feel as if I am in the best shape of my life. My blood sugar is rarely out of control and my A 1 C has never been better."

Another, who is a type 2 diabetic with a blood glucose meter, writes: "I had used my meter to record my BG reactions to the different foods that I ate. I soon discovered that certain foods raised my BG levels dramatically and I would then eliminate them from my diet. I also eliminated almost all manufactured, processed, foods. The foods first eliminated were all grains, dairy products and some starchy vegetables, most notably potatoes."

On the other hand, a diet high in meat protein is not normally recommended for diabetics. One website writes: "One study found that 21 of 23 patients on oral medications and 13 of 17 patients on insulin were able to get off of their medications after 26 days on a near-vegetarian diet and exercise program.[Am J Clin Nutr 1990; 51(3): pp.416-20] During two- and three-year follow-ups, most diabetics treated with this regimen have retained their gains. [Diabetes Care 1983;6(3):268-73] The dietary changes are simple, but profound, and they work. Low-fat, vegetarian diets are ideal for diabetics." If one were to follow the advice on BOTH these websites and eliminate grains, beans, dairy and meat, there'd be almost nothing left to eat!

What all the websites and books agree on is that if a person wants to keep their blood glucose from rising too high, they should avoid high glycemic index foods. They all say that exercise also mops up glucose and reduces the need for insulin.

Speaking for myself, after six weeks on a diet eliminating grains, beans, potatoes, and alcohol, and doing some daily exercise, my Dupuytren's (which a while ago a surgeon wanted to operate on) seems a little better. The nodule seems less active and doesn't bother me so much, and when I put my hand flat on a surface I feel less tension in the tendons. I have also lost nearly a stone in weight. I sleep right through the night now without waking up in the small hours, and the itchy skin in certain areas of my body (a common symptom of excess glucose) seems mostly to have dried up. I feel a bit stronger and fitter. On the other hand I still get the occasional aches in my shoulder and forearm which I believe are part and parcel of Dupuytren's, maybe because I use the computer a lot.

I hope these ideas will be helpful for anyone investigating this subject.

Andrew Goodson
agdg@supanet.com