Exploring Dietary Patterns and Nutrition Status of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients attending a Teaching Hospital in Zambia
Keywords:
Body mass index, Blood sugar levels, Diabetic clinic, Food consumption patterns, Nutrition status, Type 2 diabetes mellitus, Zambian Based-Dietary Guidelines
Abstract
This study explored food consumption patterns based on the Zambian Food-Based Dietary Guidelines and assessed the nutritional status of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) patients attending a diabetic clinic at a teaching hospital in Zambia. A cross-sectional design with quantitative methods was employed for data collection, analysis, and presentation. The hospital was purposively selected as it is the only teaching hospital in the district. A total of 146 consecutively diagnosed T2DM patients were recruited during the study period. Data on the types and frequency of food consumption across the six food groups were collected using a researcher-administered questionnaire. Body Mass Index (BMI) was calculated using standard procedures for measuring height and weight. Blood glucose readings were extracted from patient records. Research tools were pre-tested on a separate group of T2DM patients not included in the main study. Results showed that 87% of participants had received dietary counselling following their diagnosis. Nearly all participants (97.3%) had consumed foods from the cereals, starchy roots, and tubers group in the previous seven days. While a high proportion (87.7%) reported vegetable consumption during the recall period, the mean vegetable intake score was relatively low (2.00 ± 1.24 SD). Only a quarter (25.3%) reported fruit consumption, with a mean score of 0.32 ± 0.61 SD. Over one-third of participants (36.3%) were overweight, with women comprising the majority (39.3%). BMI was significantly associated with age and sex (p < 0.05), whereas marital status, occupation, and education level showed no significant association (p > 0.05). The findings suggest that while patients generally adhered to the Zambian Food-Based Dietary Guidelines by consuming foods from all six food groups, fruit and vegetable intake remained suboptimal. Additionally, the high prevalence of overweight and obesity highlights the need for targeted interventions to promote healthier dietary practices among T2DM patients.References
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[2] IDF Diabetes Atlas, International Diabetes Association, 2015
[3] Amos AF, McCarty DJ, Zimmet P. The rising global burden of diabetes and its complications: estimates and projections to the year 2010. Diabetic Medicine 1997; 14: S7–85.
[4] Motala AA, Omar MAK, and Pirie FJ, “Epidemiology of type 1 and type 2 diabetes in Africa,” Journal of cardiovascular risk, vol. 10, no. 2, pp. 77–83, 2003.
[5] Levitt NS, “Diabetes in Africa: epidemiology, management and healthcare challenges,” Heart, vol. 94, no. 11, pp. 1376– 1382, 2008.American Diabetes Association (2001c). Standards of medical care for patients with diabetes mellitus. In: Clinical Practice Recommendations. Diabetes Care 24(1): S33-43.
[7] Ley SH, Hamdy, O, Mohan V, Hu FB. Prevention and management of type 2 diabetes: dietary components and nutritional strategies. Lancet. 2014;383(9933):1999–2007.
[8] Koor B, Nakhaie M, & Babaie S, & Ranjbaran M. (2016). Dietary Intake Adequacy and Evaluation of Nutritional Value in Diabetic Patients. British Journal of Medicine and Medical Research. 13. 1-8.
[9] Tiew KF, Chan YM, Lye MS, Loke SC. Factors associated with dietary diversity score among individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus. J Health Popul Nutr. 2014 Dec;32(4):665-76. PMID: 25895200; PMCID: PMC4438697.
[10] Ministry of Agriculture, Zambia Food-Based Dietary Guideline, Technical recommendation, 2021
[11] Kant AK, Leitzmann MF, Park Y, Hollenbeck A, Schatzkin A. Patterns of recommended dietary behaviors predict subsequent risk of mortality in a large cohort of men and women in the United States. J Nutr 2009;139:1374-80.
[12] Katzenellenbogen JM, Joubert G, AbdoolKarim SS. Epidemiology. A manual for South Africa. Cape Town: Oxford University Pres; 2002.
[13] Teaching hospital. Action plan. Kitwe: Teaching hospital; 2016.
[14] Olatona FA, Airede CA, Aderibigbe SA, Osibogun A. Nutritional Knowledge, Dietary Habits and Nutritional Status of Diabetic Patients Attending Teaching Hospitals in Lagos, Nigeria. Journal of Community Medicine and Primary Health Care. 2019. 31 (2) 90-103
[15] Yamane, Taro. 1967. Statistics, An Introductory Analysis, 2nd Ed., New York: Harper and Row.
[16] Oliva, J., Fernández-Bolaños, A. & Hidalgo, Á. Health- related quality of life in diabetic people with different vascular risk. BMC Public Health 12, 812 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-12-812.
[17] Mwanamwenge, M., & Harris, J. 2017. Agriculture, food systems, diets and nutrition in Zambia. Discussion paper. London, International Institute for Environment and Development and Hivos.
[18] Willett, W., Rockström, J., Loken, B., Springmann, M., Lang, T., Vermeulen, S., Garnett, T., et al. 2019. Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT-Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems. Lancet, 393(10170): 447–492.
[19] Alaofè, H., Kohler, L., Taren, D., Mofu, M.J., Chileshe, J. & Kalungwana, N. 2014. Zambia
food consumption and micronutrient status survey report. Lusaka, National Food and Nutrition
Commission. (available at www.nfnc.org.zm/download/zambia-food-consumption-and-micro nutrient-status-survey-2014/).
[20] WHO/FAO (2004) Promoting fruits and vegetables consumption around the world. A joint meeting of WHO/FAO on fruits and vegetables for health improvement kobe, Japan, 1-3 September.
[21] Miller, V., Yusuf, S., Chow, C.K., Dehghan, M., Corsi, D.J., Lock, K., Popkin, B., et al. 2016.
Availability, affordability, and consumption of fruits and vegetables in 18 countries across in come levels: findings from the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology (PURE) study. Lancet Global Health, 4(10): e695–e703
[22] WHO. 2017a. Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs): key facts. In: WHO Fact Sheets [online]. Geneva. [Cited 13 July 2021]. https://www.who.int/en/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/cardiovascular-diseases-(cvds)
[23] Blanck, H.M., Gillespie, C., Kimmons, J.E., Seymour, J.D. and Serdula, M.K. (2008) Trends in fruit and vegetable consumption among US men and women, 1994- 2005. Prev Chronic Dis ; 5:A35.
[24] Oladapo A.A.*, Jude-Ojei B.S., Koleosho A.T. & Roland-Ayodele M.A . Nutritional status and food consumption pattern of diabetics in owo, nigeria. IJRRAS 17 (2). 2013.
[25] Rashid T, Afnan B.H, Baloch A.A, Mughal S, Hasan M and Khan M.U. (2023). Dietary Patterns and Physical Activity Levels Among People With Type 2 Diabetes. Nutr Metab Insights. 2023; 16.
[26] FAO. 2020. Fruit and vegetables – your dietary essentials. The International Year of Fruits and Vegetables, 2021, background paper. Rome. 81 pp. (available at https://doi.org/10.4060/cb2395en).
[27] Vyoma, A., Anita, K. and Rajbir, S.(2010) Assessment of food consumption pattern, anthropometric parameters and physical activity pattern of non-insulin dependent diabetics. Stud Home Comm. Sci, 4(2): 75-80.
[28] Deepashree,B.N. and Jamuna, P. (2007) A Study on the nutritional status of diabetics and associated risk factors. J. Hum. Ecol., 21(4): 269-274.
[29] Miyoba N, Ogada I. (2022). Nutrition scores and MUAC of adult surgical orthopaedic inpatients at a teaching hospital in Lusaka province, Zambia. MedRxiv. Pg 1 – 9.
Published
2025-06-19
How to Cite
1.
Miyoba N, Chansa A, Liusha N, Tembo M, Hamaimbo B. Exploring Dietary Patterns and Nutrition Status of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients attending a Teaching Hospital in Zambia. Journal of Agricultural and Biomedical Sciences [Internet]. 19Jun.2025 [cited 13Jul.2025];9(2). Available from: https://journals.unza.zm/index.php/JABS/article/view/1292
Section
Agriculture Sciences
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