Background: Medical nutrition therapy is the cornerstone of managing type 2 diabetes mellitus. Meals that are\nmodified to suit diabetes should be culturally acceptable, retain palatability and conform to the energy requirements of\ndiabetes. The objective of this study was to find if the dietary patterns of Sri Lankan type 2 diabetes patients have\nchanged from the traditional serving characteristics to align with dietary recommendations of diabetes, while retaining\npalatability and cultural acceptability.\nMethods: A cross-sectional survey was performed at a multi-ethnic, tertiary care diabetes facility in Sri Lanka. Fruits,\nvegetables, starch, pulses, dairy and added sugars in diet were assessed with portion size estimation using a 24-h\ndietary recall according to standard methods.\nResults: The meals consumed by participants were ââ?¬Å?traditionalââ?¬Â and retained palatability. Rice contributed to 93%\nof the starch-based food types. Ninety-two percent consumed starch in excess of the daily recommendation. Fruit\nand vegetable consumption was 1.3 and 2.8 servings per day, with 33% failing to consume any fruit. Seventy-four\npercent and 65% of participants failed to consume the minimum daily recommended number of fruit and vegetable\nservings. Only 1% of participants consumed added sugar.\nConclusions: The Sri Lankan diabetes diet is a portion-restricted version of the traditional meal that retained\ncultural acceptability and palatability. A large proportion of patients still consume carbohydrates in excess of the\nrecommendations. Although there is an increasing trend towards fruit and vegetable consumption, the majority\nstill fell short of the recommendations.
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