A low-fat vegan diet is better for type 2 diabetics than a standard diabetes diet and may even be more effective in treating diabetes than single-agent therapy with an oral diabetes drug, according to a report in the August issue of the journal Diabetes Care.

Study participants on the low-fat vegan diet showed dramatic improvement in four disease markers: blood sugar control, cholesterol reduction, weight control, and kidney function.

The vegan diet represents a major departure from current diabetes diets, in that it places no limits on calories, carbohydrates, or portions.

"The diet appears remarkably effective, and all the side effects are good ones -- especially weight loss and lower cholesterol," said lead researcher Dr, Neal D. Barnard of George Washington University. "I hope this study will rekindle interest in using diet changes first, rather than prescription drugs."

The randomized controlled trial was conducted by doctors and dieticians with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), the George Washington University, and the University of Toronto with funding from the National Institutes of Health and the Diabetes Action Research and Education Foundation.