Adherence to the DASH Diet Is Inversely Associated With Incidence of Type 2 Diabetes: The Insulin Resistance Atherosclerosis Study

OBJECTIVE - The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet has been widely promoted; however, little is known about its impact On type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS - We evaluated the association of the DASH diet with incidence of type 2 diabetes among 862 participants of the Insulin Resistance Atherosclerosis Study GRAS) who completed a 1-year food frequency questionnaire at baseline. Type 2 diabetes odds ratios (ORs) were estimated at tertiles of the DASH score. RESULTS - An inverse association was observed in whites (fertile 2 vs. fertile 1, OR 0.66 195% CI 0.29-1.48]) that became significant for the most extreme contrast (tertile 3 vs. tertile 1, 0.31 [0.13-0.75]), with adjustment for covariates. No association was observed in blacks or Hispanics (fertile 2 vs. fertile 7, 1.16 [0.61-2.18]; tertile 3 vs. tertile 1, 1.34 [0.70-2.581). CONCLUSIONS - Adherence to the DASH dietary pattern, which is rich in vegetables, fruit, and low-fat dairy products, may have the potential to prevent type 2 diabetes.