Small Rice Bowl-Based Meal Plan versus Food Exchange-Based Meal Plan for Weight, Glucose and Lipid Control in Obese Type 2 Diabetic Patients

Background: The Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys reported 65% of daily energy intake (EI) as carbohydrate (CHO) in the Korean population and main source of CHO was cooked rice. We used a standardized-small sized rice bowl for diet education and investigated its effectiveness on body weight, glucose and lipid, compared to the conventional food exchange system in type 2 diabetes obese women.

Methods: Type 2 diabetic women with body mass index >/= 23 kg/m(2) were randomly assigned to small rice bowl-based meal plan (BM) and food exchange-based meal plan (ExM) group. Both groups were asked to reduce their EI by 500 kcal/day for 12 weeks. The macronutrient composition was instructed: 55 to 60% of EI as CHO, 15 to 20% as protein, and 20 to 25% as fat. BM group received only a simple instruction for application of the rice bowl. Nutrient intake was estimated with the 3-day dietary records.

Results: Finally, 44 subjects finished the study. The percent reduction of body weight was significant both BM group (-5.1 +/- 2.6%) and ExM group (-4.8 +/- 2.8%) after 12 weeks (P < 0.001) but there was no difference between the groups. There was no difference in the proportional change of CHO, protein and fat in EI between the groups. Additionally, the change of HbA1c and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol were not significantly different between the two groups.

Conclusion: The BM group was as effective as ExM for body weight and glucose control in type 2 diabetes obese women.