Dietary guidelines in type 2 diabetes: the Nordic diet or the ketogenic diet?

Abstract

To highlight recent developments in research regarding nutrition therapies for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) with a focus on the different approaches of the Nordic diet and the ketogenic diet.

Recent short-term studies have revealed that similar beneficial outcomes are seen after different dietary treatments for T2DM, with different approaches resulting in comparable weight loss and impacts on metabolic factors.

More individualized approaches in nutrition therapy should be considered for T2DM patients and clinical guidelines should reflect this. More studies, especially long-term studies, are urgently needed on the impacts of the diets on different health parameters. Such studies should be prioritized because of the high and increasing prevalence of T2DM and because dietary changes may have greater benefits than previously thought. Furthermore, studies that focus on patient compliance to different types of diets, and personal and environmental factors that may affect compliance, are needed.