Diabetes Care, Vol 20, Issue 7 1078-1080, Copyright © 1997 by American Diabetes Association
Diabetes nutrition and complications trial (DNCT): food intake and targets of diabetes treatment in a sample of Spanish people with diabetes. Diabetes and Nutrition Study Group of the Spanish Diabetes Association (GSEDNu)
OBJECTIVE: To know the nutritional pattern of people with diabetes in Spain
and that pattern's relationship with targets of metabolic control. RESEARCH
DESIGN AND METHODS: The Diabetes Nutrition and Complications Trial (DNCT)
is a prospective multicenter study designed to determine the nutritional
behavior of diabetic patients in Spain using 7-day food diaries. A total of
337 diabetic patients, 144 (70 men and 74 women) with type I and 193 (81
men and 112 women) with type II diabetes, satisfactorily completed the
7-day food diaries from May 1993 to December 1994. RESULTS: The median
energy intake of the Spanish diabetic subjects was between 1,453 and 2,217
kcal/day (6.1-9.3 MJ/day), distributed as follows: 38-40% from
carbohydrate, 19-23% from protein, and 36-41.5% from fat (11.1-13.9%
saturated fatty acids, 4.6-5.8% polyunsaturated fatty acids, and 19.7-21.9%
monounsaturated fatty acids). Of the subjects, 69% had a cholesterol level
<5.6 mmol, 97% had an HDL cholesterol level >0.9 mmol, and 85% had a
triglyceride level <1.7 mmol, while <36% had an HbA(1c) value >8%.
CONCLUSIONS: People with diabetes in Spain have near-optimal serum lipid
levels and maintain reasonably good blood glucose control and BMI,
suggesting that diabetes management that includes the usual Spanish diet,
which is low in carbohydrates and high in fat, especially monounsaturated
fat, might be adequate.