Maximising the Taste and Health Value of Plant Food Products
Condition: Type 2 Diabetes
MeSH terms: Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      To investigate if a high dietary intake of bitter and strong tasting vegetables have positive
      health effects (insulin sensitivity, glucose tolerance, central obesity, fasting and
      postprandial lipid profile, blood pressure, vitamin D status and inflammatory markers,
      biomarkers of oxidative stress) on subjects with T2D. Also to look at a high dietary intake
      of mild and sweet modern vegetables or a normal western diet.
    

Detailed description: 
      The metabolic syndrome (MS), type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity are the world's most prevalent
      lifestyle diseases. This unfortunate development is mainly caused by lifestyle choices
      leading to obesity due to physical inactivity and excessive calorie intake.

      Vegetables are an important part of the human diet and a major source of biologically active
      substances which determine the nutritional quality of food, color, taste, smell,
      antioxidative, anticarcinogenic, antihypertensive, anti-inflammatory, antihyperglycemia,
      immunostimulating and cholesterol-lowering properties.

      Diet, as one aspect of lifestyle, is thought to be one of the modifiable variable risk
      factors for the development of MS and T2D, but more information is needed as to which
      components of the diet could be protective for the development and progression of MS and T2D
      with all its complications.

      The study will be carried out as a 3-month randomized controlled parallel intervention study
      involving 60 subjects with T2D. During the fall year 2011 30 (10 in each group) subjects will
      participate and the remaining 30 subjects (10 in each group) in the fall 2012. The subjects
      will be randomized into 3 different diets:

        1. A) "A healthy Nordic diet" with high content of bitter strong tasting vegetables and
           cabbages.

        2. B) "A healthy Nordic diet" with high content of sweet and mild tasting vegetables and
           cabbages.

        3. C) A diet habitually consumed in the Nordic countries (normal control diet). The
           subjects in groups A and B will each have to consume 500 g root vegetables and cabbages
           daily which will be handed out once a week. The participants will visit the study clinic
           at screening, and then once weekly during the intervention period (12 weeks). Beside the
           screening examination there will be 3 major visits (0, 6 and 12 weeks) where the
           participants will collect urine samples, complete a 3-day weighed food diary (to control
           diet intake) and undergo clinical examination incl. measuring of blood pressure, body
           composition and collection of fasting blood samples i.e. glucose, insulin, glucagon,
           HbA1c, GLP-1, lipids (triglycerides, HDL-, LDL- and total cholesterol), cytokines,
           adipokines, parathyroid hormone and vitamin D. During first (week 0) and third (week 12)
           major visit a 120 minutes oral glucose tolerance test is included collecting blood to
           analyze for glucose, insulin and triglycerides.

      The study will contribute to the understanding on the impact of a diet with a high level of
      root vegetables and cabbages with either high or low levels of phytochemicals. Furthermore,
      the results can be used to develop new recommendations targeted T2D and MS subjects, and
      thereby contribute to a healthier lifestyle and to prevent any further development and
      progression of these lifestyle diseases. The overall perspective of the MAXVEG project is to
      enhance the consumption and production of bitter and strong tasting health promoting root
      vegetables and cabbages with high phytochemical content and high consumer preferences
      targeted specific consumer groups
    

Intervention name(s): Diet intervention
Intervention type(s): Other
Intervention description(s): The participants in the two experimental arms will each have to consume 500 g of vegetables and cabbages daily.
Other intervention name(s): Vegetables; Ancient; Cabbages; Type 2 diabetes
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Single (Participant)
Primary purpose: Prevention
Keywords: Diet intervention; Type 2 diabetes; Vegetables; Phytochemicals