BDA says dietitians should be more involved in tackling type 2 diabetes

The British Dietetic Association (BDA) has called on the government to take urgent steps to tackle the growing rates of type 2 diabetes in the UK.
Last week, Public Health England (PHE) revealed that there are 3.8 million adults in England living with diabetes, with type 2 diabetes accounting for 90 per cent of cases.
PHE launched The Healthier You: NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme (NHS DPP) this year to tackle rising rates of obesity and type 2 diabetes.
The BDA believes dietitians have a key role of play in tackling type 2 diabetes, which can be prevented among at-risk individuals through making lifestyle changes such as eating healthily and getting regular exercise.
“These new figures should be a wakeup call for the government,” said Julie Tapli, Chair of the BDA Diabetes Specialist Group. “It seems the problem of preventable diabetes was even worse than first thought.
“Steps need to be taken to encourage more people to check whether they have diabetes or are at risk. People across the whole of the UK need to have access to advice and treatment to prevent or manage the condition.”
The BDA is England’s largest organisation of food and nutrition professionals with over 8,500 members, and it believes without intervention the rising rates of diabetes in the UK will continue to increase strain on the NHS.
“Dietitians assist people with type 2 diabetes through providing healthy diet guidance, and enabling adherence to this guidance. Additionally dietitians are in a unique position where they can tailor nutrition advice to the individual patients’ needs using the most up-to-date, robust evidence-base.”
People with prediabetes who join the Low Carb Program find that they achieve an average weight loss of 5kg after six months. They also lose an average of 3 inches around their waist and increase the amount of exercise they do by an average of 33 minutes.
Meanwhile, people with type 2 diabetes find that the program helps improve their blood glucose levels and can reduce their dependency on medication.