[Design and development of a dietary intervention in children with prediabetes]

Prediabetes is a pathological condition where the blood glucose concentration is higher than normal concentrations, but lower than those considered in the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2). Until a few years ago, the prediabetes condition occurred in adults with associated risk factors such as overweight or obesity, sedentary lifestyle, poor eating habits, cardiovascular problems, etc. In recent years it has begun to be detected in children, with the family habits that these children have established becoming increasingly important.

In our study, 29 pre-diabetic children from Pedro Abad, Córdoba, have been evaluated. For this, we have carried out a randomized crossover trial with an intervention group (IG) and a control group (CG), using a dietary intervention with nutritional reinforcement. The main objective of the present study was to determine if the eating habits of pre-diabetic children improved with a dietary intervention based on nutritional education.

Through a nutritional evaluation through different tests and visits made to the children, the results corresponding to the first phase of the study, relate an improvement in eating habits and adherence to the Mediterranean Diet by the intervened children.

The eating habits of pre-diabetic children improve with a dietary intervention based on nutritional education, since by providing them with knowledge of the different foods and the contribution of nutrients that they provide us, they can make a better selection of foods.