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Preventing the global burden of type 2 diabetes by improving the quality of staple foods: The Global Nutrition and Epidemiologic Transition Initiative
Author(s) -
Mattei Josiemer,
Malik Vasanti,
Wedick Nicole M,
Spiegelman Donna,
Hu Frank B,
Willett Walter C,
Campos Hannia
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.1055.23
Subject(s) - nutrition transition , staple food , life expectancy , medicine , environmental health , epidemiological transition , type 2 diabetes , psychological intervention , epidemiology , gerontology , diabetes mellitus , obesity , geography , agriculture , overweight , population , endocrinology , archaeology , psychiatry
Type 2 diabetes has reached epidemic proportions globally, affecting low‐ and high‐income countries. Two main contributors have been the epidemiological transition and concomitant adverse changes in diet. We aimed to depict the current state of diabetes in light of the ongoing epidemiological and nutrition transition, and to posit that a key factor has been a shift in the type and processing of staple foods, using data from 10 countries participating in the Global Nutrition and Epidemiologic Transition Initiative (GNET), a collaborative effort aiming to reduce diabetes by improving the quality of traditional foods through culturally‐appropriate interventions. We depicted the epidemiological transition using median age, life expectancy, overall death rate and cause of death, and the nutrition transition using data from food balance sheets. Main staple foods (rice, roots, tubers, wheat, corn, legumes) differed by country, with most countries undergoing a shift in principal contributors to energy in the past 60 years. A notable example was the opposing trend in percent energy from rice (positive) vs. legumes (inverse). GNET countries with pilot data have documented barriers and motivators to increase intake of high‐quality traditional foods. In summary, global research efforts to identify and promote intake of culturally‐acceptable high‐quality staple foods could play a key role in diabetes prevention.