engleski

The importance of nutrition education for diabetics – type 1 versus type 2 diabetics

Nutrition education is an integral part of the diabetic therapy that aims at achieving good glycaemic control to prevent complications. This is very important for type 1 diabetics (DMT1), where nutrition and insulin therapy must be matched. The aims of the study were: the evaluation of differences in nutrition education between DMT1 and type 2 diabetics (DMT2), the influence of education on glycaemic control and diet quality, and the self- assessment of health- related quality of life. An observational study was conducted on patients with DMT1 (n=101) and DMT2 (n=90) from Croatia, by using a study-specific questionnaire. Diet quality did not differ significantly between DMT1 and DMT2 patients. However, 18.0 % of DMT1 and 20.0 % of DMT2 patients lack proper education on the diabetic diet, thus they do not adhere to one. Poor glycaemic control was recorded for 48.5 % of DMT1 and 73.5 % of DMT2 patients (p <0.001). Psychophysical health is better among the DMT2 patients (p <0.001), while the DMT1 patients have a better social life (p = 0.015) and the overall quality of life (p <0.001). The results show that diabetics have poor nutrition knowledge, clearly showing the need for professional, continuous nutrition education. Education would help diabetics in improving their life quality and glycaemia control, which decreases disease complications.

diabetes type 1, diabetes type 2, diet quality, glycaemia control, quality of life

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