Richard K. Bernstein
Encyclopedia
Richard K. Bernstein, MD is a physician and an advocate for a low-carbohydrate diabetes diet
to help achieve normal blood sugars for diabetics. Bernstein has type 1 diabetes
. His private medical practice in Mamaroneck, New York
is devoted solely to treating diabetes and prediabetes. He is a fellow of the American College of Nutrition
, the American College of Endocrinology
and The College of Certified Wound Specialists. He is the author of six books on diabetes and normalizing blood sugars.
Lab World. It was for the first blood glucose meter that would give a reading in 1 minute, using a single drop of blood. The device was intended for emergency staff at hospitals to distinguish unconscious diabetics from unconscious drunks
. The instrument weighed three pounds, cost $650, and was only available to certified physicians and hospitals. Determined to take control of his situation, Bernstein asked his wife, a doctor, to order the instrument for him.
Bernstein began to measure his blood sugar about 5 times each day and soon realized that the levels fluctuated wildly throughout the day. To even out his blood sugars, he adjusted his insulin
regimen from one injection
per day to two and experimented with his diet, notably by reducing his consumption of carbohydrate
s. Three years after Bernstein began monitoring his own blood sugar levels, his complications were still progressing and he began researching scientific articles about the disease. He discovered several studies on animals suggesting that complications from diabetes could be prevented, and even reversed, by normalizing blood sugars. This is in contrast to the then extant treatment of diabetes which focused on low-fat, high carbohydrate diets and on preventing hypoglycemia
and ketoacidosis
.
Bernstein set out to achieve normal blood sugars; within a year he had refined his insulin and diet to the point that they were normal throughout the day. After years of chronic fatigue and complications, Bernstein felt healthy and energized. His serum cholesterol
and triglyceride
levels were now in the normal ranges, and friends commented that his complexion was no longer gray. He is believed to be the first individual to self-monitor his blood sugar and was an early advocate for such monitoring by diabetics.
field to change the standard treatment of diabetics. Bernstein wrote a paper describing his technique and attempted to get it published in many major medical journals, but none would accept it, in part because he was not an MD. In 1977, he decided to give up his job and become a physician—"I couldn’t beat ‘em, so I had to join ‘em."
At 45 years old, Richard Bernstein entered the Albert Einstein College of Medicine
. In 1983 he opened his own medical practice near his home in Mamaroneck, New York
.
In 2008, at 74 years of age, Bernstein has surpassed the life expectancy of type 1 diabetics. He attributes his longevity
to the low-carbohydrate dietary approach and lifestyle changes he developed for diabetics. As of 2006, Bernstein had an HDL
cholesterol of 118, LDL
of 53, Triglyceride
s of 45, and average blood sugar
of 83 mg/dl.
(ADA) for both type 1 and type 2 diabetics. His dietary recommendations are in contradiction to other diets.
Some of the highlights of his treatment program include:
Diet (nutrition)
In nutrition, diet is the sum of food consumed by a person or other organism. Dietary habits are the habitual decisions an individual or culture makes when choosing what foods to eat. With the word diet, it is often implied the use of specific intake of nutrition for health or weight-management...
to help achieve normal blood sugars for diabetics. Bernstein has type 1 diabetes
Diabetes mellitus type 1
Diabetes mellitus type 1 is a form of diabetes mellitus that results from autoimmune destruction of insulin-producing beta cells of the pancreas. The subsequent lack of insulin leads to increased blood and urine glucose...
. His private medical practice in Mamaroneck, New York
Mamaroneck (town), New York
Mamaroneck is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 29,156 at the 2010 census. There are two villages contained within the town: Larchmont and the Village of Mamaroneck...
is devoted solely to treating diabetes and prediabetes. He is a fellow of the American College of Nutrition
American College of Nutrition
The American College of Nutrition is a 501 charitable non-profit organization established to encourage the scientific investigation of nutrition and metabolism...
, the American College of Endocrinology
Endocrinology
Endocrinology is a branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific secretions called hormones, the integration of developmental events such as proliferation, growth, and differentiation and the coordination of...
and The College of Certified Wound Specialists. He is the author of six books on diabetes and normalizing blood sugars.
Early life
In 1946, at the age of twelve, Richard Bernstein developed type 1 diabetes. For more than two decades, Bernstein was what he calls, “an ordinary diabetic”—one who dutifully followed doctor’s orders. Despite his diligence coping with the disease, the complications from his diabetes worsened over the years, by the time Bernstein reached his thirties, many of his body’s systems began to deteriorate.Learning of the blood sugar meter
In October 1969, Bernstein came across an advertisement in the trade journalTrade journal
A trade magazine, also called a professional magazine, is a magazine published with the intention of target marketing to a specific industry or type of trade. The collective term for this area of publishing is the trade press....
Lab World. It was for the first blood glucose meter that would give a reading in 1 minute, using a single drop of blood. The device was intended for emergency staff at hospitals to distinguish unconscious diabetics from unconscious drunks
Drunkenness
Alcohol intoxication is a physiological state that occurs when a person has a high level of ethanol in his or her blood....
. The instrument weighed three pounds, cost $650, and was only available to certified physicians and hospitals. Determined to take control of his situation, Bernstein asked his wife, a doctor, to order the instrument for him.
Bernstein began to measure his blood sugar about 5 times each day and soon realized that the levels fluctuated wildly throughout the day. To even out his blood sugars, he adjusted his insulin
Insulin
Insulin is a hormone central to regulating carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle....
regimen from one injection
Injection (medicine)
An injection is an infusion method of putting fluid into the body, usually with a hollow needle and a syringe which is pierced through the skin to a sufficient depth for the material to be forced into the body...
per day to two and experimented with his diet, notably by reducing his consumption of carbohydrate
Carbohydrate
A carbohydrate is an organic compound with the empirical formula ; that is, consists only of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, with a hydrogen:oxygen atom ratio of 2:1 . However, there are exceptions to this. One common example would be deoxyribose, a component of DNA, which has the empirical...
s. Three years after Bernstein began monitoring his own blood sugar levels, his complications were still progressing and he began researching scientific articles about the disease. He discovered several studies on animals suggesting that complications from diabetes could be prevented, and even reversed, by normalizing blood sugars. This is in contrast to the then extant treatment of diabetes which focused on low-fat, high carbohydrate diets and on preventing hypoglycemia
Hypoglycemia
Hypoglycemia or hypoglycæmia is the medical term for a state produced by a lower than normal level of blood glucose. The term literally means "under-sweet blood"...
and ketoacidosis
Ketoacidosis
Ketoacidosis is a metabolic state associated with high concentrations of ketone bodies, formed by the breakdown of fatty acids and the deamination of amino acids. The two common ketones produced in humans are acetoacetic acid and β-hydroxybutyrate....
.
Bernstein set out to achieve normal blood sugars; within a year he had refined his insulin and diet to the point that they were normal throughout the day. After years of chronic fatigue and complications, Bernstein felt healthy and energized. His serum cholesterol
Cholesterol
Cholesterol is a complex isoprenoid. Specifically, it is a waxy steroid of fat that is produced in the liver or intestines. It is used to produce hormones and cell membranes and is transported in the blood plasma of all mammals. It is an essential structural component of mammalian cell membranes...
and triglyceride
Triglyceride
A triglyceride is an ester derived from glycerol and three fatty acids. There are many triglycerides, depending on the oil source, some are highly unsaturated, some less so....
levels were now in the normal ranges, and friends commented that his complexion was no longer gray. He is believed to be the first individual to self-monitor his blood sugar and was an early advocate for such monitoring by diabetics.
Medical school
Bernstein believed that the same technique could be used to assist diabetics whose quality of life could vastly improve if they followed a similar lifestyle. Despite his effectiveness in treating his own condition, as a layperson he had difficulty gaining the necessary attention of the medicalMedicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
field to change the standard treatment of diabetics. Bernstein wrote a paper describing his technique and attempted to get it published in many major medical journals, but none would accept it, in part because he was not an MD. In 1977, he decided to give up his job and become a physician—"I couldn’t beat ‘em, so I had to join ‘em."
At 45 years old, Richard Bernstein entered the Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Albert Einstein College of Medicine is a graduate school of Yeshiva University. It is a not-for-profit, private, nonsectarian medical school located on the Jack and Pearl Resnick Campus in the Morris Park neighborhood of the borough of the Bronx of New York City...
. In 1983 he opened his own medical practice near his home in Mamaroneck, New York
Mamaroneck (town), New York
Mamaroneck is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 29,156 at the 2010 census. There are two villages contained within the town: Larchmont and the Village of Mamaroneck...
.
In 2008, at 74 years of age, Bernstein has surpassed the life expectancy of type 1 diabetics. He attributes his longevity
Longevity
The word "longevity" is sometimes used as a synonym for "life expectancy" in demography or known as "long life", especially when it concerns someone or something lasting longer than expected ....
to the low-carbohydrate dietary approach and lifestyle changes he developed for diabetics. As of 2006, Bernstein had an HDL
High density lipoprotein
High-density lipoprotein is one of the five major groups of lipoproteins, which, in order of sizes, largest to smallest, are chylomicrons, VLDL, IDL, LDL, and HDL, which enable lipids like cholesterol and triglycerides to be transported within the water-based bloodstream...
cholesterol of 118, LDL
Low density lipoprotein
Low-density lipoprotein is one of the five major groups of lipoproteins, which in order of size, largest to smallest, are chylomicrons, VLDL, IDL, LDL, and HDL, that enable transport of cholesterol within the water-based bloodstream...
of 53, Triglyceride
Triglyceride
A triglyceride is an ester derived from glycerol and three fatty acids. There are many triglycerides, depending on the oil source, some are highly unsaturated, some less so....
s of 45, and average blood sugar
Blood sugar
The blood sugar concentration or blood glucose level is the amount of glucose present in the blood of a human or animal. Normally in mammals, the body maintains the blood glucose level at a reference range between about 3.6 and 5.8 mM , or 64.8 and 104.4 mg/dL...
of 83 mg/dl.
Low-carbohydrate diabetes diet and treatment plan
Bernstein's program for treating diabetes is highly regarded amongst his patients and achieves great blood sugar control, which reduces some or all of the complications associated with diabetes. The tradeoff is compliance with a very restricted diet and in many cases, frequent testing and insulin shots. Bernstein strongly opposes the dietary guidelines from the American Diabetes AssociationAmerican Diabetes Association
The American Diabetes Association is a United States-based association working to fight the consequences of diabetes, and to help those affected by diabetes...
(ADA) for both type 1 and type 2 diabetics. His dietary recommendations are in contradiction to other diets.
Some of the highlights of his treatment program include:
- A very low carb diet to allow much tighter blood sugar control.
- For an adult, the allowed carbohydrate amounts are 6 grams for breakfast, 12 grams for lunch, 12 grams for dinner.
- Avoiding all foods with added sugar, all foods with starches, all fruits.
- Blood glucose testing up to 8 times per day.
- Target blood glucose levels that are nearly constant for the entire day.
- Weight loss for obese people with type 2 diabetes.
- Exercise for all those with type 2 diabetes.
- BasalBasal (medicine)Basal when used in a medical sense refers to a minimal level that is necessary for health or life. As used by diabetics and health care professionals, it describes a low, continuous dosage of insulin intended to "cover" the glucose output of the liver.This works together with a bolus of insulin,...
and bolusBolus (medicine)In medicine, a bolus is the administration of a medication, drug or other compound that is given to raise its concentration in blood to an effective level...
dosing for insulin users, a technique that he invented in 1972. - The patient takes responsibility for blood sugar control.