TAIZ: Yemen diabetes diet followers have driven a rise in emergency cases at Republican Hospital after some patients stopped prescribed medication, doctors told Al Jazeera.
Dr Hamza al-Qusais, head of the hospital’s emergency department, said staff stabilised patients in the emergency room before referring them to specialists.
The patients had followed el-tayebat, a restrictive diet promoted online by Diaa el-Awadi, a former Egyptian doctor struck off by authorities.
Egypt’s health ministry closed two of el-Awadi’s clinics in March and cited him as a health risk after his diet and medical claims spread online.
Murad al-Adimi, a 67-year-old construction worker with diabetes, said he stopped taking medication after hearing claims that diet alone could replace insulin or pills. He later fainted and was taken to Republican Hospital, where doctors treated him.
Dr Sadeq Aqlan, a cardiologist at the hospital, said many patients who stopped medication were poor or lacked the health literacy to assess online claims.
Yemeni nutritionist Maram Fuad said the diet had no scientific basis for dividing foods into “good” and “bad” categories.
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She said chronic-disease patients needed individualised, balanced diets under medical or nutrition supervision.
The diet also hit food markets in Taiz, where egg and chicken sellers reported a decline in demand after followers avoided the restricted foods.
