Healthy diet is associated with a reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes and is highly effective in its treatments. Diets that emphasize whole grains, vegetables, fruits, and legumes and reduce animal products improve blood glucose concentrations, body weight, plasma lipid concentrations, and blood pressure and play an important role in reducing the risk of cardiovascular and microvascular complications.
Diabetes is a major worldwide health challenge affecting individuals, families, communities, and governments. The International Diabetes Federation estimated that 463 million people (9.3% of the worldwide population) had diabetes in 2019. Prevalence is expected to increase to 578 million (10.4%) by 2030. Globally, diabetes caused 15 million deaths and contributed to 12% of health care expenditures in 2015. In addition to contributing to mortality, macrovascular and microvascular complications of diabetes greatly reduce quality of life.
Diabetes prevalence has increased in recent decades in the context of significant diet changes, including reduced consumption of vegetables, fruits, and legumes, coupled with increased consumption of animal-derived and processed food products. A Healthy diet is associated with a significantly lower prevalence of type 2 diabetes, and there is strong evidence supporting the use of these diets in clinical practice for individuals with type 2 diabetes. The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists and the American College of Endocrinology, as well as the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, recommend a Healthy diet as a key component of lifestyle therapy for patients with type 2 diabetes. In addition to these, the USDA lists a Healthy Dietary Pattern as an example of a healthy meal plan in the 2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Healthy diet is consisting mainly of grains, vegetables, legumes, fruits, nuts, seeds, healthy oils and products made from them.
Healthy diet is associated with reduce risk of type 2 diabetes
Observational studies in widely diverse locales have identified large reductions in diabetes risk among populations consuming vegan and vegetarian eating patterns, compared with other dietary patterns.
Like a plant-based diet, Healthy diet emphasize the consumption of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes, and reduce meat, refined grains, and sugar, while allowing modest amounts of animal products.
A Harvard study that included 26,357 men from the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (1986–2006), 48,709 women from the Nurses’ Health Study (1986–2006), and 74,077 women from the Nurses’ Health Study II (1991–2007) found that increasing meat by half a serving per day was associated with a 48% (1.48; 95% CI: 1.37, 1.59) increase in diabetes risk over a 4-y period.
Healthy Diet Is Effective for Treating Type 2 Diabetes
Healthy diets, and plant-based diets, improve glycemic control, body weight, and cardiovascular risk factors in individuals with type 2 diabetes. A meta-analysis of 6 randomized controlled trials (N = 255) demonstrated that vegetarian diets were associated with a 0.4% greater reduction in glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) when compared with other prescribed eating patterns for diabetes.
Low-fat, plant-based and healthy diets improve glycemic control. Various formulations have been tested for many years. In 1979, a 16-d, mainly plant-based, dietary intervention designed to maintain body weight was tested in a closed setting. Nine out of 20 men with type 2 diabetes were able to eliminate insulin, and the other 11 were able to reduce it by 60% after following a high-fiber diet (65 g of fiber, 70% calories from carbohydrate, 21% from protein, 9% from fat).
Observational studies and randomized controlled trials support the benefits of healthy diets for diabetes. The consumption of whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables in conjunction with the reduce of animal products reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. In individuals with type 2 diabetes, a healthy diet improves body weight, glycemic control, plasma lipid concentrations, and blood pressure, while reducing the risk of CVD and microvascular complications.
Health care providers should feel confident in counseling their patients to follow a plant-based eating pattern and should be prepared to provide education and support to improve their patients' diabetes outcomes, general health, and psychological well-being.
Karimi, H.
Master of clinical Nutrition & Dietetics
Reference
- Jardine MA, et al. Perspective: Plant-Based Eating Pattern for Type 2 Diabetes Prevention and Treatment: Efficacy, Mechanisms, and Practical Considerations. Advances in Nutrition.2021.
