Whole Grain Consumption Lowers Diabetes Risk

Eating more whole grains could reduce diabetes risk, reports a study in PLoS Medicine.
As part of the Nurses' Health Study, researchers periodically recorded consumption of whole grains in some 160,000 women. After 12 to 18 years' follow-up, the multivariate-adjusted risk for type 2 diabetes was about 35% lower in women in the highest quintile of whole grain intake compared with those in the lowest quintile. Although further adjustment for BMI "substantially weakened the association," significant differences remained.
Researchers also conducted a meta-analysis of six prospective studies of men and women and concluded that a two-servings-per-day increment in whole grain consumption was linked to a 21% lower risk for diabetes.
The authors note that on average, adults eat one serving of whole grains per day, "suggesting that increased consumption has the potential to contribute substantially to reducing risk of type 2 diabetes."