Want to keep diabetes at bay? Eat food cooked at home, say scientists
Nothing beats the food cooked at home. No, it is not just your mother who believes that. Now, she has scientists backing her up. According to a new study, home-made food does not only help you keep processed fat at bay, it may also help you cut the risk of developing diabetes.
Nothing beats the food cooked at home. No, it is not just your mother who believes that. Now, she has scientists backing her up. According to a new study, home-made food does not only help you keep processed fat at bay, it may also help you cut the risk of developing diabetes.
Individuals who often ate from outside, typically fast food were more prone to gain weight — a major cause for developing Type 2 diabetes, the researchers said.
Read: Canned food may up the risk of diabetes, heart disease
Concerns have been raised that such people have a diet that is rich in energy but relatively poor in nutrients — this could lead to weight gain, which is, in turn, associated with an increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, said Qi Sun from the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health.
The findings showed that the people who consumed five-seven evening meals prepared at home during a week had a 15% lower risk of Type 2 diabetes than those who consumed two such meals or fewer in a week.
A smaller, but still statistically significant, reduction was apparent for those who consumed more midday meals prepared at home.
Well-established diabetes prevention strategies include behavioural interventions aimed at increasing exercise and improving dietary habits.
Read: Scientists may have found a new personalised approach to treat diabetes
The nutritional and lifestyle benefits of consuming meals prepared at home could contribute to these diabetes prevention efforts, the researchers suggested.
For the study, appearing in the journal PLOS Medicine, the team employed large prospective datasets in which US health professionals — both men and women — were followed up for long periods, with rigorous collection of data on health indicators, including self-reported information on eating habits and occurrence of diabetes.
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