The association between type 2 diabetes and dietary antioxidant index: a cross-sectional study in the Iranian population

Objective:  This study aims to explore the association between dietary antioxidant index (DAI) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) in the Iranian population.

Subjects and methods:  The present cross-sectional study comprised 4,241 participants aged from 35 to 70. A food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was used to assess dietary intake. The DAI score was determined using Wright's method, which quantifies the antioxidant content of the diet. Logistic and linear regression analyses were used to determine the link between DAI and T2D after adjusting for confounding variables.

Results:  Negative associations were found between T2D with total score of DAI (OR = 0.67, CI95%: 0.55-0.81, P = 0.001) and DAI score of zinc (OR = 0.53, CI95%: 0.40-0.72, P = 0.001), manganese (OR = 0.77, CI95%: 0.68-0.88, P = 0.001), and selenium (OR = 0.88, CI95%: 0.78-0.98, P = 0.010) after adjustments for age, sex, BMI, education level, marital status, occupation, physical activity, and calorie intake.

Conclusion:  These results indicate the significance of an antioxidant-rich diet in preventing T2D and its complications. Nevertheless, additional investigation is required to validate these findings and explore the fundamental mechanisms of the association of T2D and dietary antioxidants.

Keywords
Type 2 diabetes; diet; antioxidant; dietary antioxidant index