Aims/hypothesis Dietary non-oil-seed pulses (chickpeas, beans, peas, lentils, etc.) are a good source of slowly digestible carbohydrate, fibre and vegetable protein and a valuable means of lowering the glycaemic-index (GI) of the diet. To assess the evidence that dietary pulses may benefit glycaemic control, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled experimental trials investigating the effect of pulses, alone or as part of low-GI or high-fibre diets, on markers of glycaemic control in people with and without diabetes. Methods We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and the Cochrane Library for relevant controlled trials of ≥7 days. Two independent reviewers (A. Esfahani and J. M. W. Wong) extracted information on study design, participants, treatments and outcomes. Data were pooled using the generic inverse variance method and expressed as standardised mean differences (SMD) with 95% CIs. Heterogeneity was assessed by χ 2 and quantified by I 2 . Meta-regression models identified independent predictors of effects. Results A total of 41 trials (39 reports) were included. Pulses alone (11 trials) lowered fasting blood glucose (FBG) (−0.82, 95% CI −1.36 to −0.27) and insulin (−0.49, 95%

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A low-carbohydrate plant-based diet has lipid-lowering advantages over a high-carbohydrate, low-fat weight-loss diet in improving heart disease risk factors not seen with conventional low-fat diets with animal products.