Timing of intake of specific foods Improves Survival in Diabetes Patients

Diet is an accepted modifiable behavior that could be helpful for the prevention and therapy of diabetes. Although studies suggested that the time of ingestion plays an important role in the prevention and treatment of diabetes, only a few studies have examined the association of consumption time of different food with the natural course of diabetes. Therefore, Dr Tianshu Han and his colleagues conducted a study to investigate whether food intake time across 3 meals is associated with long-term survival among people with diabetes.

In this study, the researchers analyzed data from 4,642 adults aged 18 years and older with diabetes who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2003 to 2014. They divided food consumption across a day including the forenoon, afternoon, and evening into quantiles based on their distribution. They used Cox proportional hazards regression models to analyze the survival relationship between food intakes time and mortality.

Key findings of the study:

• In the morning, compared to the participants in the lowest quantile of potato and starchy vegetable, the researchers observed that the participants in the highest quantile had a lower mortality risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) [hazard ratio (HR)potato = 0.46; HRstarchy-vegetable = 0.32].
• In the afternoon, they noted that the participants who consumed whole grain had lower mortality of CVD (HRwhole grain = 0.67).
• In the evening, they found that the highest quantile of dark vegetable and milk intake is related to lower mortality risk of CVD (HRdark vegetable = 0.55; HRmilk = 0.56) and all-cause mortality (HRmilk = 0.71).
• They also found that the participants in the highest quantile of intakes of processed meat are more likely to die due to CVD (HRprocessed-meat = 1.74).
• Altogether, they noted that isocalorically switching 0.1 serving potato or starchy vegetable consumed in the afternoon or evening to the forenoon, 0.1 serving dark vegetable consumed in the afternoon to the evening, and 0.1 serving whole grain consumed in the forenoon to the afternoon reduced the risk of CVD mortality.

The authors concluded, 'Higher intake of potato or starchy vegetable in the forenoon, whole grain in the afternoon, and dark vegetable and milk in the evening and a lower intake of processed meat in the evening was associated with better long-term survival in people with diabetes".

For further information:

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1210/clinem/dgac069.

Keywords: Starchy vegetable, Mealtime, Timing of food intake, long-term survival, type 2 diabetes, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, CVD Mortality,dark vegetable, Diabetic diet, Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.