Sm. Virtanen et al., Comparison of diets of diabetic and non-diabetic elderly men in Finland, The Netherlands and Italy, EUR J CL N, 54(3), 2000, pp. 181-186
Objective: To evaluate whether dietary recommendations for subjects with di
abetes are met among Finnish, Dutch and Italian elderly men with diabetes,
and whether the diets of diabetic and non-diabetic men differ in these thre
e countries.
Design: A dietary survey using cross-check dietary history method. A cross-
sectional comparison.
Setting: Thirty-year Follow-up of survivors from the Finnish, Dutch and Ita
lian cohorts of the Seven Countries Study.
Subjects: 227 elderly men from Finland, 537 from The Netherlands, and 417 f
rom Italy, of whom 8-9% had diabetes.
Main results: The diets of non-diabetic men from the three countries differ
ed markedly from each other. In all three countries diabetic men consumed l
ess added sugar than non-diabetic men. In Italy, in addition, diabetic men
consumed more fruits and berries and vegetables. The Dutch diabetic men ate
relatively more cereal products, fruits and berries, milk and milk product
s, cheese, and meat and meat products and drank less alcoholic beverages th
an non-diabetic men. The diet of both diabetic and non-diabetic Finnish and
Dutch men was characterized by high fat content (41% and 40% of energy, re
spectively). The fat content of the diet was even higher for diabetic than
non-diabetic men in Finland and The Netherlands, but not in Italy. The fibr
e content of the diet was the highest among Dutch men and diabetic men rece
ived more dietary fibre than non-diabetic men in The Netherlands and Italy,
but not in Finland. The diet of diabetic and non-diabetic Finnish men diff
ered little from each other and was characterized by high nutrient density
of several vitamins and minerals. The proportion of protein of energy intak
e was higher among diabetic than non-diabetic Dutch and Italian men.
Conclusions: The diet of the diabetic men from Finland, the Netherlands, an
d Italy resembled more the diet of non-diabetic men from the respective cou
ntries than the diet of diabetic men from the other countries. In the diet
of Italian diabetic men, the proportions of fat, saturated fatty acids and
carbohydrates were nearest the recommended levels.