Another Case for
increasing fiber content into our diets.
Dr. June Stevens of the
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and colleagues note that studies of
dietary fiber intake and diabetes have had mixed results. Some show a
considerable effect and others demonstrate no significant association.
To investigate further, the
researchers studied 12,251 subjects aged from 45 to 64 years. Over 9 years of
follow-up, 1447 developed diabetes. The incidence was greater in blacks (17.5%)
than in whites (10.2%).
There was no association between
glycemic index and diabetes in either blacks or whites. This was also true of
factors including total dietary fiber, and intake of legume fiber and fruit
fiber.
Cereal fiber intake was inversely
associated with the risk of diabetes in both blacks and whites, but this
association reached statistical significance only in whites. For whites, the
hazard ratio for diabetes was 0.75 in the highest compared to the lowest
quintile of cereal fiber intake. The corresponding figure for blacks was 0.86.
The researchers suggest that this
lack of a significant association may have been due to a small sample size, and
they call for further studies in this "and other ethnic groups that are at
increased risk for this disease."
Given the explosion in the worldwide rates of diabetes that is following on the heels of the obesity epidemic, we need to be working hard to develop programs to prevent obesity and diabetes. At the same time it is very important to have more research on the impact of dietary fiber and other dietary factors on the development of the disease," that according to the researchers.
Source: Diabetes In Control Dot Com:
Diabetes Care 2002;25:1715-1721.
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