The Glycemic Index Concept Uptake and Dietary Assessment in Type 2 Diabetes

• Author / Creator

  Avedzi, Hayford M

• Effective dietary self-management is essential for metabolic control and prevention of complications for improved health outcomes and quality of life among individuals with diabetes.This body of research examined dietary self-management practices and effectiveness of a web-based lifestyle modification intervention designed to enhance uptake of guideline recommendations of Diabetes Canada (formerly Canadian Diabetes Association) regarding the glycemic index (GI) concept for improving carbohydrate and overall diet quality.The intervention, guided by the Social Cognitive Theory principles of self-efficacy and social support, was based on current Diabetes Canada recommendations and tailored to deliver simple, actionable messages around the GI concept, which is often regarded as a difficult topic to teach.Findings from this research have shown that using a bundle of patient preferred modes of delivering GI-targeted nutrition information has great potential for changing dietary habits. Specifically, it was shown that adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D) who were randomized to a 12-week web-based intervention increased GI knowledge and self-efficacy with a significant reduction in mean daily GI intakes. Furthermore, this research has increased our understanding of the readiness of the older adult population for web-based lifestyle interventions. This is an important finding, which can inform future web-based interventions by researchers and healthcare specialists supporting people with T2D. Given these findings, future research involving larger, more diverse sample may be needed to expand on the feasibility and usefulness of this alternative approach for bridging GI knowledge translation gaps in other populations as well as integration within clinical care and self-management support for people with diabetes.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Type 2 Diabetes
  • Dietary Assessment
  • Glycemic Index Concept

• Graduation date

  Spring 2019

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Doctor of Philosophy

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/r3-1pxe-5078

• License

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