Fusion of Traditional Dietary Wisdom and Modern Medical Nutrition: Exploration and Validation of a Localized Dietary Strategy for Diabetes in China

Abstract

The prevalence of diabetes in China has reached 11.6%, affecting over 140 million people, more than 90% of whom have type 2 diabetes. While dietary therapy is a cornerstone of diabetes management, its clinical effectiveness is hampered by insufficient cultural compatibility . Western dietary patterns (e.g., the "low-carbohydrate diet" recommended by the American Diabetes Association guidelines, Mediterranean diet) fundamentally conflict with Chinese dietary culture characterized by "staple-food dominance," "family-style shared meals," and the concept of "food as medicine" (medicinal food homology). This cultural mismatch results in patient dietary therapy adherence of only 10.5%, significantly lower than the 45% observed in developed countries. This study systematically explored the blood sugar-control wisdom inherent in traditional Chinese dietary patterns (such as "Five Grains as Sustenance", "Grain-Legume Mixing”, and "Seasonal Nourishment”) and medicinal foods (e.g., bitter gourd, Chinese yam, cinnamon, goji berries). Combining this with modern medical nutrition tools (Glycemic Index/GI, Glycemic Load/GL, food exchange system, continuous glucose monitoring technology), we constructed a localized dietary strategy. By integrating both traditional practices (e.g., "Grain-legume mixing reduces postprandial blood glucose by 20%~35%") and modern scientific validation (e.g., "Momordicosides from bitter gourd inhibit α-glucosidase activity to reduce postprandial glucose"), this strategy addresses the core challenge of low dietary adherence. The strategy preserves cultural identity (e.g., modified recipes for festive foods like zongzi and mooncakes) while achieving an HbA1c reduction of 0.5%~0.8% through GL control. It provides clinicians with a practice-oriented framework that balances cultural compatibility with scientific efficacy, ultimately enhancing patient self-management capabilities.