Are we achieving the dietary recommendations for diabetic patients? An audit of dietary advice to diabetic patients

An audit of the nutritional intake of people with diabetes treated either with insulin or oral hypoglycaemic agents, who had never been taught carbohydrate exchanges was undertaken. A total of 63 diabetic patients completed a 7-day food diary using household measures. Results indicated that 70% achieved the dietary recommendations for fat intake and 30% the recommendations for carbohydrate intake. The majority of the subjects also achieved the dietary recommendations for both non-milk extrinsic sugars and cholesterol, but they were less successful at meeting the recommendations for non-starch polysaccharides and protein. The standards used were the British Diabetic Association Recommendations (1992) and The Dietary Reference Values (1991). These results compare favourably with other studies both of people with diabetes and the general population.