Mind what you eat

THE Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) which was submitted to the United States government in February 2015 provided a comprehensive review of the impact of diet on health. While its relationship on heart attacks and strokes have been summarised in my earlier article, the review also looked at the evidence on diet and its relationship with diabetes, cancers, birth defects, brain and bones, all of which have been summarised below.

Unhealthy diets increase risk of developing diabetes

The DGAC was of the view that there is moderate evidence that indicates that adherence to a healthy diet can reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes (diabetes that is not dependent on the use of insulin injections). This conclusion was based on the pooled data of 15 studies which indicated that there was a 21 per cent reduction in the risk of developing type 2 diabetes with adherence to a healthy diet with high consumption of whole grains, vegetables, and fruit.