Abstract

Rafiya Siddiqua1*, Edwina Raj2, Geetha Santhosh3, V. Prasanna4

ABSTRACT

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) is a rapidly growing public health concern in India, with dietary patterns playing a critical role in glycaemic control. While the glycaemic index (GI) of foods is known to affect postprandial glucose levels, limited research has explored the specific impact of dinner GI on fasting blood sugar (FBS) in Indian patients with T2DM. This cross-sectional observational study investigated the association between the GI of dinner meals and FBS among 127 adult diabetic patients at a specialized diabetes care centre in Bangalore. Dietary intake was assessed using a validated questionnaire and 24-hour recall, and the weighted GI of dinner meals was calculated based on available carbohydrate content using the Indian Food Composition Tables. Clinical data, including FBS, PPBS, and HbA1c, were collected alongside anthropometric and lifestyle parameters. Statistical analyses including Chi-square, ANOVA, and Independent t-tests were performed using SPSS v22. Results showed a high average FBS (176.98 mg/dL) and HbA1c (8.68%), indicating poor glycaemic control. Although a significant portion of participants consumed moderate- to high-GI dinner meals, the study found no statistically significant association between dinner GI and FBS levels (p > 0.05). In contrast, a statistically significant relationship was found between the medicine dosage-to-sample collection interval and the glycaemic index (GI) of the dinner meal (F = 2.767, p = 0.045). Similarly, total dietary fibre intake showed a near-significant inverse trend with FBS (p = 0.064), suggesting a potential role in glycaemic control. Despite the lack of a direct relationship between dinner GI and fasting glucose, the findings highlight critical gaps in dietary adherence, diabetes education, and lifestyle behaviours among T2DM patients. The study reinforces the importance of structured nutritional counselling and the promotion of low-GI, high-fibre diets as part of holistic diabetes management strategies. Future research should include long-term randomized control trials to compare the effect of low glycaemic index meal in diabetes management. The effects of the low-glycaemic index diet on medication use and quality of life also should be explored.