Abstract: Dietary patterns have shifted toward Westernized foods and people are becoming
more sedentary resulting diabetes mellitus is a chronic disorder associated
with derangements in carbohydrate, lipid and protein metabolism. About 30 diabetic
subjects from Banasthali University, Rajasthan were selected aged between 40-60
years (17 females and 13 males) to understanding the pattern of dietary intake
and anthropometric dimensions of the middle aged diabetic subjects. Diabetic,
dietary and other informations was collected using a questionnaire. Dietary
intake was assessed using the 24 h dietary recall method. Anthropometric measurements
including weight and height were taken and Body Mass Index (BMI) and MUAC were
computed to establish the extent of obesity. The findings from the dietary survey
showed that the mean energy intake of the subjects achieved about 83.4 and 111.6%
of the Indian Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) while fat intake of all subjects
was more than RDA and other nutrient intake was inadequate. The mean BMI of
females and males were 25.35±4.54 and 27.34±4.57 kg m-2
and mean MUAC were 26.52±2.47 and 34.48±4.54 cm, respectively.
Family history of diabetes was found in 24 subjects. The most common symptoms
were polyuria (3.44±1.82), polydypsia (5.68±5.21), polyphagia
(3.34±0.90), decreased healing capacity (4.95±4.01) and general
weakness (4.19±4.75) in terms of mean duration in months. Accordingly,
nutritional status of diabetics is linked with various factors like educational
level, physical activity, dietary pattern, etc. |