Individuals experience significantly different changes in blood glucose levels (as shown by using a continuous glucose monitor) after eating the same foods. Some patients with normal blood glucose levels experience after-meal glycemic spikes that are in the diabetic range.
A person’s gut microbiome more accurately predicts the individual spike in blood glucose after eating than just knowing a food’s calories or carbohydrates. Eran Segal and Eran Elinav from the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel, developed an algorithm, described in the journal Cell, that used microbiome data as well as other factors, such as age, sex, height, hip circumference, and physical activity, to predict after-meal glycemic responses in people who did not have diabetes.
In essence, food labeling remains a mythical beast. It is the personalized dietary intervention that drives the individual insulin response.
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2015.11.001
