Consuming caffeine before meal linked to rise in glucose, insulin

SCRIPPS HOWARD
Diabetics seeking to keep blood glucose levels down might want to reconsider their caffeine intake around mealtimes, new research suggests.
A small study by Duke University researchers involving 14 regular coffee drinkers diagnosed as type-2 diabetics for at least six months saw their glucose and insulin levels shoot up when they took caffeine pills and ate a meal.
The findings were published today in the August issue of Diabetes Care.
In type-2 diabetes, the most common form of the disease, the body either does not produce enough insulin or the cells ignore insulin's signals to process sugar from the blood.
Patients in the study did not have to use insulin therapy to control their blood sugar, but did continue to take their prescribed medications as normal. They were observed on two mornings after an overnight fast and abstinence from caffeine, taking a glucose test and then getting either 250 milligrams of caffeine or a placebo pill.
After waiting an hour, another blood sample was taken, then a third capsule to be taken with the liquid meal that included 75 grams of carbohydrates. More blood samples were taken one and two hours after the meal.
Though there was little effect from the caffeine as long as patients were fasting, after the meal, those who got caffeine had a 21-percent increase in glucose levels and a 48-percent increase in insulin levels, on average.