Energy and nutrient intakes and adherence to dietary guidelines among Finnish adults with type 1 diabetes.
BACKGROUND
Patients with type 1 diabetes are instructed to eat a healthy, balanced diet. Implementation of diet is an under-studied phenomenon. We aimed to describe the nutrient intake of a large sample of adult Finnish patients with type 1 diabetes and assess whether they meet the recommendations.


METHODS
Cross-sectional data from a total of 817 patients are presented. Data on food intake were collected with a 3-day food record completed twice with a 2-3-month interval. Compliance with dietary guidance was self-reported.


RESULTS
Patients frequently reported a diet low in carbohydrates and fibre but high in fat. Only 28% restricted saturated fatty acid to less than 10% of their daily energy intake. One-fourth of the patients reported higher than recommended sucrose intake. Salt recommendations were frequently exceeded. Of the micronutrients, the recommendations for vitamin A, vitamin D, folate, and iron were most frequently unmet. Although self-reported compliance was associated with a higher frequency of meeting the recommendations for some of the macronutrients, the actual frequencies were modest. In general, those compliant were observed to consume more vitamin and mineral-dense food.


CONCLUSIONS
Dietary intake among patients with type 1 diabetes does not, for many nutrients, meet the recommendations.
Folkhälsan Institute of Genetics, Folkhälsan Research Center, Biomedicum Helsinki, Finland.
Aila J
AJ
Ahola
Vera
V
Mikkilä
Sari
S
Mäkimattila
Carol
C
Forsblom
Riitta
R
Freese
Per-Henrik
PH
Groop
D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000178:diet therapy*; D004032:Diet / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015930:Diet Records; D004034:Diet Surveys; D002149:Energy Intake; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009751:Nutritional Requirements; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*