September 12, 2025
2 min read
Key takeaways:
- Researchers conducted a meta-analysis of 33 studies on the association between diet and type 2 diabetes risk.
- Three dietary patterns were linked to reduced risk for type 2 diabetes regardless of ethnicity.
Following the Mediterranean, Alternative Healthy Eating Index or Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension diets was associated with lower risk for type 2 diabetes regardless of ethnicity, according to results of a recent meta-analysis.
The findings will be presented at the upcoming European Association for the Study of Diabetes Annual Meeting.
Data were derived from Lee JY, et al. Abstract #12. To be presented at: European Association for the Study of Diabetes Annual Meeting; Sept. 15-19, 2025; Vienna.
Jia Yi Lee, PhD student in nutritional epidemiology at the Medical Research Council Epidemiology Unit of University of Cambridge, U.K., and colleagues conducted a systematic literature search to identify 33 published studies of more than 800,000 participants that reviewed the associations between type 2 diabetes and dietary patterns including the Mediterranean diet, the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI) and Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) and whether these associations differed across ethnic groups.
“Previous research has been largely based on white European-origin populations from Western countries,” Lee told Healio. “Since diabetes burden and dietary habits differ by ethnicity, we wanted to examine whether these dietary patterns are similarly linked to a lower risk across ethnic groups.”
Jia Yi Lee
The meta-analysis compared the risk reduction for individuals in the top 90th percentile of dietary pattern adherence with those in the lowest 10th percentile of adherence across ethnic groups.
Overall, individuals in the top percentile for adherence had the greatest risk reduction for type 2 diabetes when following the Mediterranean (RR = 0.83; 95% CI, 0.79-0.87), AHEI (RR = 0.79; 95% CI, 0.73-0.85) or DASH (RR = 0.77; 95% CI, 0.73-0.82) diets compared with the lowest adherence groups.
Notably, these associations remained significant across all diets for different ethnic groups, including African, Asian and European populations. The risk reduction for individuals of Hispanic and mixed/other ethnicity did not reach statistical significance across each of the diets, although the researchers noted this may be due to limited data for these groups.
“These dietary patterns all emphasize the consumption of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and nuts and legumes, while limiting red and processed meat and sugar-sweetened beverages,” Lee noted. “As they are consistently associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, they can therefore be recommended to individuals of diverse ethnic backgrounds for health promotion.”
To improve patient adherence to healthy diets, Lee suggests clinicians start with simple recommendations.
“Adherence to these diets may be improved by encouraging small and sustainable changes, as well as aligning recommendations with individuals’ cultural food preferences that are compatible with these dietary patterns,” she said. “Beyond individual responsibility, changes are also needed in the wider food environment that guide and enable people to access healthy food options.”
Lee recommends that future research explore effective strategies that promote healthy eating across different population groups.
“Since dietary habits vary globally, future research should identify optimal dietary patterns and culturally relevant promotion strategies to better address the global burden of type 2 diabetes linked to diet,” Lee said.
For more information:
Jia Yi Lee can be reached at JiaYi.Lee@mrc-epid.cam.ac.uk.
Sources/Disclosures
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Lee JY, et al. Abstract #12. To be presented at: European Association for the Study of Diabetes Annual Meeting; Sept. 15-19, 2025; Vienna.
Disclosures:
Lee reports receiving a scholarship from the Gates Cambridge Trust, which had no involvement in this research.
