By Colin Kenny, GP, Dromore
The researchers used electronic searches to conduct a systematic review of meta-analyses and randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in adults with, or at risk for, type 2 diabetes that compared the Mediterranean diet with a control diet in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Trials were included for meta-analyses if they had a control group treated with another diet, if they were of sufficient duration (at least 6 months), and if they had at least 30 participants in each arm.
Having scrutinised 2824 studies, the researchers found eight meta-analyses and five RCTs which were suitable for inclusion. On examining these studies they found that there was a favourable effect for the Mediterranean diet, as compared with other diets, on body weight, total cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. There was also a suggestion that, if this diet was adhered to, the risk of future diabetes was reduced by 19–23%.
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