Integrating quinoa as part of a regular diet may prevent the development of Type II diabetes because it helps control glucose changes, according to a study coming out of Spain. And, it could also have some positive effects on some cardiovascular diseases (CVD).

“Consuming quinoa as a partial substitute for other cereals commonly consumed in our diet is beneficial for the control of glucose spikes and can help in the prevention of metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes,” Dr. Diana Díaz Rizzolo, main author and professor at Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, tells NutritionInsight. 

The study, published in Nutrient, includes three men and six women who were over the age of 65 and tested positive for prediabetes in a fasting glucose blood test. The experiment also utilized a continuous blood glucose monitor that checked the participants’ glucose levels every minute of the day. 

The study notes that 70% of people with prediabetes will develop Type II diabetes if not properly treated.

Mountain grains to the rescue
Quinoa is a pseudocereal from the Andes mountains in South America and has been found to be highly nutritious. It has amino acids, fiber, protein and complex carbohydrates. It is also high in and minerals like magnesium, iron and calcium. 

Moreover, quinoa contains polyphenols, an antioxidant micronutrient that has been shown to lower blood glucose levels in mice. 

Due to its nutritional value, the researchers theorized that quinoa could have positive effects on some CVDs and other metabolic illnesses like Type II diabetes, one of the world’s leading causes of premature death.

She further explains how a quinoa-based diet works, stating that prediabetics experience a spike in blood glucose levels after meals because their pancreas does not produce enough insulin or their bodies cannot detect insulin. The quinoa-based diet helped dro those peaks.

“We believe that this is due to the nutritional composition of quinoa itself since it has more healthy fats and more proteins, as well as a low glycemic index,” elaborates Rizzolo.

Avoiding the peaks
Since Type II diabetes is often preceded by prediabetes – during which time it is possible to prevent the development of Type II diabetes – the researchers tested how a quinoa-based diet might affect this initial condition.

They note that 70% of people who develop prediabetes will develop Type II diabetes if not properly treated. The study also notes that as people get older, the chances of prediabetes becoming Type II diabetes also increases and that one in ten people develop Type II diabetes every year and that the World Health Organization reports killed 1.5 million people globally in 2019.

“We compared the blood sugar patterns and found that when the participants had eaten quinoa, their blood sugar spike was lower than with their usual diet,” says Rizzolo. “This is crucial because these post-meal blood sugar spikes are a determining factor in the progression of type 2 diabetes.”

Dr. Rizzolo states that quinoa can help lower blood glucose spikes after meals.

“These peaks are important determinants in the development of type 2 diabetes and reducing them is what makes quinoa such an interesting food.”

Blazing the trail
The researchers monitored the nine participants’ blood glucose levels caused by their regular diets for 28 days and then replaced some of their foods with quinoa-based alternatives and monitored them for another 28 days.

“It is an important characteristic to highlight that in our study it was important for the volunteers to maintain their usual food consumption and modify, based on their usual consumption, only the portion from cereals, tubers and derivatives,” Rizzolo stresses. “There are no previous studies in patients at high risk of developing Type II diabetes with quinoa.” 

“The production of food based on 100% quinoa flour is practically non-existent since those that are commercialized usually contain mixtures of other flours such as rice or wheat. The conclusions of this study open a window to the possibility of creating these products for the benefit of the health of the population.”