Swap steak for Greek salad to slash your risk of diabetes

The Mail — It has long been used as a model of healthy eating to protect our hearts.

Now the ‘Mediterranean diet’ has been proven by scientists to also significantly protect us against type 2 diabetes.

Researchers from Harvard University followed the diets and medical histories of 200,000 health professionals in the US over a period of 20 years.

Those with a higher consumption of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and beans, and a lower consumption of meat, were 34 per cent less likely to develop type 2 diabetes.

Plant and animal products were ranked in an index giving higher and lower scores respectively, in order to produce an overall ‘grade’ for their diet.

It was already known that there are some health benefits to a vegetarian diet, but this study, published in the journal PLOS One, highlighted the importance of the difference between ‘healthy’ and ‘less healthy’ versions of plant-based foods.

For example, grains should be consumed as the wholegrain variety, and not be refined.

Those who opted for the ‘less healthy’ options of vegetarian foods, such as refined grains, potatoes and sugary drinks, found themselves sixteen percent more likely to develop type 2 diabetes.

A plant-based diet low in animal products was shown to reduce the risk by 20 per cent – rising to thirty four percent if the healthiest versions were consumed.

It’s thought the ‘healthy versions’ work against diabetes because of their high levels of fibre, antioxidants, unsaturated fatty acids and micronutrients such as magnesium

They can also help to boost healthy gut bacteria.

A study in 2013 by the Universities of Barcelona, Valencia, Malaga and Navarra showed that this plant based Mediterranean diet also helps to prevent against cardiovascular disease and stroke.

And another study showed the ‘good fats’ in Mediterranean olive oil are a more effective way of reducing weight than counting calories.

TYPE 1 DIABETES

Normally develops in early childhood
Present in 10% of diabetes cases
The pancreas gland can’t produce the hormone insulin, which regulates blood sugar
This can leave blood sugar levels dangerously high
Treatment is normally in the form of regular insulin injections

TYPE 2 DIABETES

Can develop at any age
Present in around 90% of diabetes cases
If the body’s cells are exposed to too much insulin as a result of a high-sugar or unhealthy diet, they can stop reacting to it
This ‘insulin resistance’ leaves blood sugar levels dangerously high
Treatment is normally through an improved diet and exercise regime

However this is the first time the diet has been shown to protect t against diabetes – another disease of increasing prevalence in Western society.

‘This study highlights even moderate dietary changes in the direction of a healthful plant based diet can play a significant role in the prevention of type 2 diabetes. These findings provide further evidence to support current dietary recommendations for chronic disease prevention,’ said nutritionist Dr Ambika Satija of Harvard University.

Co author Professor Frank Hu said: ‘A shift to a dietary pattern higher in healthful plant based foods such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds, and lower in animal based foods, especially red and processed meats, can confer substantial health benefits in reducing risk of type 2 diabetes.’

Since the study cumulatively measured participants’ diet over a long time, it lowered possible errors in measurement from the data being self reported.