Children who eat a lot of fruit and oats early in life may have a higher risk of developing type 1 diabetes, a new study finds.
Type 1 is the most common form of diabetes in children and can lead to eye, heart, nerve and kidney problems.
Researchers asked the parents of 5,600 children in Finland to fill out food diaries from the age of 3 months to 6 years. By the end, 94 children had been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and 200+ had developed islet cell changes that put them at risk for the disease.
When their dietary intake – covering 34 food groups – was factored in, the results showed kids who ate the most fruit, oats and rye were much more likely to develop type 1 diabetes.
But berries – including strawberries, blueberries and raspberries – appeared to offer protection. The more berries a kid consumed, the lower their risk was.
The lead author says, “Berries are particularly rich in polyphenols, plant compounds which may dampen the inflammation that is associated with the development of type 1 diabetes.”
Bananas, fermented dairy products such as yogurt, and wheat were associated with an increased risk of islet damage while broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage were associated with decreased risk.
The researchers say while these findings are important, it’s still too early to recommend any dietary changes.
They say many of the foods that were linked to type 1 diabetes are considered healthy, and so their results must be replicated first.
Source: EASD
Author Affiliations: Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki
