A unhealthy diet It is one of the most important factors in the development of diabetes, a metabolic disease in which blood sugar goes out of control. It is said that 70% of new cases of diabetes arise from an unhealthy diet.
The calculation comes from a large study recently published in ‘Nature Medicine’ for which researchers from the American University of Tufts used the Global Dietary Database, containing information on food consumption in different countries of the world. Analyzing data from 184 countries for the years between 1990 and 2018, the authors found that poor diet has led to an increase in diagnoses, with more than 14 million new cases in 2018 alone.
The researchers were also able to identify the most unhealthy eating habits: Much of the problems stem from insufficient intake of whole grains and excess refined carbohydrates and processed meats, and the negative effects of an unhealthy diet are particularly evident in men, younger people, and those living in urban rather than rural settings.
choose the carbohydrates “correct” is therefore one of the cornerstones to prevent diabetes, but also to control it when glucose metabolism is no longer balanced: this was recently highlighted by experts from the Italian Diabetes Society (Sid), who dedicated a whole session of the last “Diabetes Panorama” conference to the “recipe” for a healthy and anti-diabetic diet. They dismantled a series of myths and topics on carbohydrates, starting with the idea that people with type 2 diabetes should be completely deprived of them, given how much they can affect disease risk and glycemic management.
“A diet that is too low in carbohydrates is not healthy, even for diabetics, who must maintain a carbohydrate intake of 50% of daily calories,” explains Angelo Avogaro, president of Sid and director of the Endocrine-Metabolic and Cardiovascular Risk Department. from the University of Padua.