Increased Diabetes Risk Linked to Diet

Can’t live without your favorite cheeseburger and milkshake meal? A new study from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) might make you think twice.

The study reports that men who consume a typical “western” diet—including high consumption of red and processed meat and high-fat dairy products—are much more likely to develop diabetes than those who consume a “prudent” diet of vegetables, fruits, fish, poultry and grains.

Published in last Tuesday’s issue of Annals of Internal Medicine, the study focused on more than 42,000 men, 40 to 75 years of age, over the course of 12 years.

Most surprisingly, the study also suggests that people who eat “prudent” foods in addition to large consumptions of red meat and refined grains have slightly lower risks of developing diabetes, but still have a good chance of developing the disease.

The study overthrows the common belief that partially changing one’s diet would significantly reduce the risks of developing serious health problems.

Instead, people should change their entire eating pattern, said Frank Hu, an assistant professor of nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health and the study’s senior author.

“Low fat is not as important as people think. The entirety of eating pattern is more important,” Hu said.

Hu said he recognizes the difficulty of changing eating patterns, since they are deeply affected by lifestyle choices and personal habits. He suggested that people can gradually switch out of the “western” style of eating by starting to lower saturated fat intake.

Obtaining fat and carbohydrates from healthier sources are the fundamentals of changing to a better eating pattern, Hu said.

Foods that contain healthier fat, such as poultry and fish, are much better for people than red meat and high-fat products. Whole grains and brown rice are excellent substitutes for white bread and potatoes, he said.

Hu said he believes that by educating the public about the seriousness of the diabetes and the right types of “prudent” foods can help raise public awareness of healthy eating and the consequences of not eating correctly.

According to Hu, Americans in general do not pay enough attention to the seriousness of diabetes, which is categorized as one of the major epidemics in this country. Yet, Hu said that prevention efforts are poor.

“People should recognize the devastating consequences of diabetes,” Hu said.