Omega_3 Fatty Acid Supplementation and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Nutritional etiology of metabolic stress has been well documented in diabesity. However, influence of faulty dietary practices and/or RBC membrane omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acid profiles on glycemic and inflammatory control among type 2 patients is less studied.

This book is based on a study of the effect of omega-3 PUFA supplementation on glycemic control, inflammatory response and erythrocyte fatty acid profile of vegetarian and non-vegetarian Type 2 Diabetes mellitus patients.

The book describes the methodology of the study which was conducted in two phases: In phase 1, a total of 200 uncontrolled type 2 diabetic patients with mean age of 50.5 6.2 years were enrolled by using purposive sampling technique. Eighty DM patients with lower intake of omega 3 FA were selected from phase 1 and were randomly divided into 2 groups. Control group were provided only diet counselling but the experimental group was given omega 3 fatty acid supplementation to be consumed twice a day for 3 months in addition to diet counselling. All the participants were assessed pre and post for glycemic control, inflammation marker and RBC membrane fatty profile.

Results of Phase 1 showed poor nutrient status among participants i.e. significantly higher incidence of obesity, poor glycemic control and higher inflammatory markers. They also had lower intake of energy, carbohydrates, protein, and EPA/DHA but higher intake of total fat and SFA than their respective RDAs. A complete imbalance in the fatty acid consumption was observed among participants. Their n-3 fatty acid consumption was negatively correlated with HbA1C and hs-CRP levels while pro-inflammatory food intake was significant positively correlated with the same (pAmong the participants, vegetarians had significantly higher obesity, lower consumption of protein, higher fat intake, and higher MUFA intake compared to non-vegetarians. A non-significant difference was observed between vegetarians and non-vegetarians with respect to their fatty acid. Lower FBS, PPBS, HbA1C and higher hs-CRP were observed in vegetarians (p>0.05). Dietary omega 3 fatty acid intake was found to be significantly negatively correlated with metabolic stress among vegetarian participants (pThe gender wise comparison showed significantly higher body fat percentage in females and significantly higher visceral fat percentage and LBM percentage in males (p Phase 2 results showed extremely low level of erythrocyte membrane n-3 fatty acid fatty acid content of the participants. A significant decrease was observed in HbA1c and hs-CRP post intervention in both experimental and control group. Although the erythrocyte alpha linolenic acid increased significantly (pThus the study showed higher level of nutrient related metabolic stress with lower consumption of omega 3 fatty acids in uncontrolled type 2 diabetic patients. Results of the intervention trial indicated the possibility of controlling inflammation and improving glycemic indices among Type 2 Diabetes mellitus patients through diet modification with special emphasis on omega 3 FA content.