Assessment of diabetes dietary knowledge and its impact on intake of patients in Senwabarwana, Limpopo, South Africa

Background: Dietary diabetes knowledge is a significant contributor to the improvement of eating habits. Adequate dietary knowledge leads to adherence to a dietary plan, which is viewed as a cornerstone in diabetes treatment, and linked with better diabetes outcomes. The aim of the study is to assess diabetes dietary knowledge and intake of patients. Method: A convergent mixed-methods parallel study design was conducted with 217 participants (200 quantitative and 17 qualitative). The quantitative phase used a cross-sectional descriptive design; data were collected using a close-ended questionnaire and analysed using SPSS Software v24.0. The qualitative phase used a phenomenological exploratory design; data were collected using interviews and analysed using 8 Steps of Tesch’s inductive, descriptive open coding technique. Results: About 81% and 81.5% of quantitative participants understand the importance of nutrition, and that eating large portion sizes may lead to increased blood sugar, respectively, compared with all qualitative participants. However, qualitative participants further reported intake of large portion sizes due to family eating patterns. Only 28.5% of quantitative participants consume breakfast, compared with all qualitative participants. Conclusion: Diabetes patients know the disadvantages of consuming large food portions, but a family culture of eating patterns prohibits patients eating accordingly, justifying the need for the adoption of family-centred diabetes care.