Glycemic control and weight reduction are primary goals for the management of overweight and obese type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Effective management cannot be achieved without an appropriate diet. Our study aimed to evaluate the short- and long-term effects of oat intake and develop a reasonable dietary plan for overweight T2DM patients. A randomized control trial, registered under ClinicalTrials.gov (Identification code: NCT01495052), was carried out among adult T2DM patients. A subgroup of 298 overweight subjects was selected and received a 30-day centralized intervention and 1-year free-living follow-up. Participants were randomly allocated to one of the following four groups. The usual care group (n = 60) received no intervention; the healthy diet group (n = 79) received a low-fat and high-fiber diet (“healthy diet”); the 50 g-oats group (n = 80) and 100 g-oats group (n = 79) received the “healthy diet” with the same amount of cereals replaced by 50 g and 100 g oats respectively. Anthropometric, blood glycemic and lipid variables were measured. For the 30-day intervention, significant differences in the changes of FPG (fasting plasma glucose), PPG (postprandial plasma glucose), HbA1c (glycosylated hemoglobin), HOMA-IR (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance), TC (total cholesterol), TG (total triglycerides), and LDL-c (low-density lipoprotein cholesterol) were observed among the four groups. Compared to the healthy diet group, the 50 g-oats group had a bigger reduction in PPG (mean difference (MD): −1.04 mmol/L; 95% CI: −2.03, −0.05) and TC (MD: −0.24 mmol/L; 95% CI: −0.47, −0.01); the 100 g-oats group had a bigger reduction in PPG (MD: −1.48 mmol/L; 95% CI: −2.57, −0.39), HOMA-IR (MD: −1.77 mU·mol/L²; 95% CI: −3.49, −0.05), TC (MD: −0.33 mmol/L; 95% CI: −0.56, −0.10) and LDL-c (MD: −0.22 mmol/L; 95% CI: −0.41, −0.03). In the 1-year follow-up, greater effects in reducing weight (MD: −0.89 kg; 95% CI: −1.56, −0.22), HbA1c (MD: −0.64%; 95% CI: −1.19, −0.09) and TG (MD: −0.70 mmol/L; 95% CI: −1.11, −0.29) were observed in the 100 g-oats group. In conclusion, short- and long-term oat intake had significant effects on controlling hyperglycemia, lowering blood lipid and reducing weight. Our study provided some supportive evidence for recommending oat as a good whole grain selection for overweight diabetics.

Background: Previous studies suggested that nucleotides were beneficial for liver function, lipid metabolism and so on. The present study aimed to investigate the metabolic response of dietary nucleotides supplementation in alcohol-induced liver injury rats. Methods: Five groups of male Wistar rats were used: normal control group (basal diet, equivalent distilled water), alcohol control group (basal diet, 50% alcohol (v/v)), dextrose control group (basal diet, isocaloric amount of dextrose), and 0.04% and 0.16% nucleotides groups (basal diet supplemented with 0.4 g and 1.6 g nucleotides kg⁻¹ respectively, 50% alcohol (v/v)). The liver injury was measured through traditional liver enzymes, expression of oxidative stress markers and histopathological examination. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole-time-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) was applied to identify liver metabolite profiles. Results: Nucleotides supplementation prevented the progression of hepatocyte steatosis. The levels of total proteins, globulin, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, total cholesterol triglyceride, as well as the oxidative stress markers altered by alcohol, were improved by nucleotides supplementation. Elevated levels of liver bile acids (glycocholic acid, chenodeoxyglycocholic acid, and taurodeoxycholic acid), as well as lipids (stearic acid, palmitic acid, oleic acid, phosphatidylcholine, and lysophosphatidylethanolamine) in alcohol-treated rats were reversed by nucleotides supplementation. In addition, supplementation with nucleotides could increase the levels of amino acids, including valyl-Leucine, l-leucine, alanyl-leucine and l-phenylalanine. Conclusion: These data indicate potential biomarkers and confirm the benefit of dietary nucleotides on alcoholic liver injury.

Objective: Many patients with type 2 diabetes find it difficult to maintain good glycemic control. Undesirable glycemic control occurs greatly due to deficiencies of nutritional knowledge and difficulty in obtaining dietary prescriptions. The late middle-aged and elder individuals are the main populations that are affected by type 2 diabetes. The main purpose of this study was to investigate whether intensive nutrition education would make benefits for late middle-aged patients with type 2 diabetes. Method: 196 patients between 50 to 65 years old meeting type 2 diabetes criteria and eligible for the program were included in a single-blinded, 30-day centralized management of an education program in China. Participants in the program were randomly divided into a usual nutrition education group or an intensive nutrition education group. The usual nutrition education group was used as a control group and received only basic health advice and principles of diabetic diets at the beginning and the end of the study. Participants in the intensive nutrition education group were arranged to receive intensive nutritional lectures about diabetes for 30 days. The primary outcomes were the changes in weight, body mass index (BMI), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), 2-h postprandial plasma glucose (PG), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), total glycerin (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c). Results: After 30 days of intervention, FPG, PG, and HbA1c in the treatment group decreased significantly than the control group (p < 0.05). HbA1c reduced significantly by 0.6% in the intervention group. No significant differences in the change of blood lipids were observed between groups. However, TG, TC, and HDL-c made improvements compared with the baseline in the experimental group. Both groups had a reduction in weight and BMI within groups, especially in intensive nutrition education group. However, there was no statistical significance between groups. Conclusions: Intensive nutrition education has significant effects on blood glucose control in late middle-aged adults with type 2 diabetes. Intensive education can cultivate good diet habits and increase physical activity, which are important for diabetes patients in the short and long terms. These findings may contribute to improving education methodology and nutrition therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Diabetes mellitus is very common in elderly Chinese individuals. Although nutritional intervention can provide a balanced diet, the sustaining effect on at-home dietary behavior and long-term plasma glucose control is not clear. Consequently, we conducted a long-term survey following one month of experiential nutritional intervention combined with health education. Based on the Dietary Guidelines for a Chinese Resident, we found that the food items met the recommended values, the percentages of energy provided from fat, protein, and carbohydrate were more reasonable after one year. The newly formed dietary patterns were “Healthy”, “Monotonous”, “Vegetarian”, “Japanese”, “Low energy”, and “Traditional” diets. The 2h-PG of female participants as well as those favoring the “Japanese diet” decreased above 12 mmol/L. Participants who selected “Japanese” and “Healthy” diets showed an obvious reduction in FPG while the FPG of participants from Group A declined slightly. “Japanese” and “Healthy” diets also obtained the highest DDP scores, and thus can be considered suitable for T2DM treatment in China. The results of the newly formed dietary patterns, “Japanese” and “Healthy” diets, confirmed the profound efficacy of nutritional intervention combined with health education for improving dietary behavior and glycemic control although health education played a more important role. The present study is encouraging with regard to further exploration of comprehensive diabetes care.