Plant-Based Food for the Prevention of Type 2 Diabetes: Scoping Review

Nutrients. 2024 May 29;16(11):1671. doi: 10.3390/nu16111671.

Abstract

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) is a chronic condition with growing worldwide prevalence. Besides genetic factors, a sedentary lifestyle, excess weight, and inadequate eating habits, characterized by an excess intake of refined carbohydrates and ultra-processed foods, are contributing factors for the development of the disease. In this scenario, promoting a plant-based diet, and limiting animal product consumption while increasing the intake of vegetables, concurrently with healthy lifestyle habits, is a promising strategy to prevent T2DM. This scoping review, carried out between 2017 and 2022, aimed to gather evidence substantiating the benefits of a plant-based diet in T2DM prevention, considering different eating patterns, such as vegetarian, vegan, Mediterranean, and DASH diets. Several studies demonstrate a significant reduction in T2DM incidence among individuals adopting plant-based eating patterns or emphasizing healthy plant-based food alongside decreased intake or exclusion of animal-based foods. There are still no robust data regarding plant-based diets and the prevention of diabetes without loss in body weight. Hence, prospective studies in plant-based diets with weight control are needed. Nevertheless, adopting plant-based diets appears to induce significant weight loss, which is crucial in an obesity-endemic context. Thus, embracing plant-based diets, along with healthy habits, emerges as a relevant strategy in obesity and T2DM prevention.

Keywords: cardiovascular risk; glycemic control; plant-based diet; prevention; type 2 diabetes.

Publication types

  • Scoping Review

MeSH terms

  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* / epidemiology
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* / prevention & control
  • Diet, Healthy / methods
  • Diet, Mediterranean
  • Diet, Vegan
  • Diet, Vegetarian*
  • Feeding Behavior
  • Humans
  • Obesity / epidemiology
  • Obesity / prevention & control