Nutrition Counselling in Patients with Diabetes in Germany-Results from an Online Survey.

INTRODUCTION

Treatment guidelines recommend nutrition therapy and nutrition counselling as essential components in diabetes management. Little is known about how nutrition therapy/nutrition counselling is implemented in diabetes care. Therefore, the aim of this survey was to collect data on nutrition therapy/nutrition counselling in persons with diabetes in Germany.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND

METHODS

An online survey using a standardized questionnaire was conducted from August 2021 to April 2022. People with diabetes were invited to answer questions on their diabetes management with a focus on nutrition counselling. The dataset was descriptively analyzed.

RESULTS

In total, 1,208 adults were included in the analysis. Approximately half of all participants (49.2%, n=594) suffered from type 1 diabetes and the other half (50.8%, n=614) from type 2 diabetes. Among the participants with type 1 diabetes, 66.8% reported to have had any dietary counselling as compared to 62.9% of those with type 2 diabetes. In addition, repeated dietary counselling was reported by 44.9% of participants with type 1 diabetes and 36.3% of those with type 2 diabetes. In these, dietary counselling was provided in 42.1% (type 1 diabetes) and 40.6% (type 2 diabetes), respectively, by nutritionists/dietitians. Provision of nutrition counselling was not related to body mass index or the mode of medication in both types of diabetes. The majority of survey participants expressed interest in receiving more and regular dietary counselling and identified a need for improvements regarding nutrition counselling.

CONCLUSIONS

This survey showed that nutrition counselling in patients with diabetes in Germany is not in accordance with current treatment guidelines and widely underutilized. With respect to the potential of an adequate diet for metabolic control and prevention of cardiovascular diseases, there is an urgent need for a better and more structured implementation of nutrition counselling in diabetes care.