Glycaemic stability of a cyclist with Type 1 diabetes: 4011 km in 20 days on a ketogenic diet

Maintaining glycaemic control during exercise presents a significant challenge for people living with Type 1 diabetes. Significant glycaemic variability has been observed in athletes with Type 1 diabetes in competitive contexts. While very-low-carbohydrate ketogenic diets have been shown to minimize glycaemic excursions, no published data have examined if this translates to exercise.

We report the case of a 37-year-old man with Type 1 diabetes who successfully undertook a 4011 km cycle across Australia over 20 consecutive days whilst consuming a very-low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet. Continuous glucose monitoring data capture was 98.4% for the ride duration and showed remarkable glycaemic stability, with a standard deviation of 2.1 mmol/l (average interstitial glucose 6.1 mmol/l) and 80.4% of time spent within a range of 3.9-10 mmol/l. Interstitial glucose was <3 mmol/l for 2.1% of this time, with only a single episode of symptomatic hypoglycaemia prompting brief interruption of exercise for carbohydrate administration.

This case demonstrates the viability of a very-low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet in an individual with Type 1 diabetes undertaking exercise. While the effect of a very-low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet is yet to be examined more broadly in athletes with Type 1 diabetes, the glycaemic stability observed suggests that fat adaptation may attenuate glycaemic swings and reduce reliance on carbohydrate consumption during exercise for maintaining euglycaemia.