Acceptability of lower glycemic index foods in the diabetes camp setting.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the acceptability of lower glycemic index (GI) foods served at diabetes camp.

DESIGN

Crossover design of standard and lower GI menus.

SETTING

Three consecutive 5-day diabetes camp sessions.

PARTICIPANTS

140 youth, age 7-16, with type 1 or 2 diabetes.

INTERVENTION

A standard camp cycle menu was reformulated to include 2 1/2 days of standard foods and 2 1/2 days of lower GI foods.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Youth provided satisfaction ratings after meals and snacks using measures designed for this study. Observations of food consumption were conducted on a random sample of youth for each meal.

ANALYSIS

Descriptive analyses and t-tests were conducted to assess differences in satisfaction with and consumption of standard and lower GI foods.

RESULTS

Lower GI foods served at dinner and for snacks received satisfaction ratings equal to standard foods (dinner: 3.68 lower GI versus 3.79 standard, P = .30; snacks: 3.74 lower GI versus 3.79 standard, P = .60). Lower GI foods served at breakfast and lunch received lower, though very acceptable, ratings (breakfast: 3.76 lower GI versus 4.04 standard, P < .01; lunch: 3.64 lower GI versus 3.88 standard, P = .01). Consumption of all meals was acceptable. No differences occurred in the frequency of high or low blood sugars between standard and lower GI days.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

Higher quality carbohydrates may be provided to youth in institutional settings while maintaining sufficient levels of acceptability; specific findings are instructive for designing efforts to increase their consumption.