Dietary practice and associated factors among type 2 diabetic patients attending chronic follow-up in public hospitals, central Ethiopia, 2022

BACKGROUND: Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is affecting numerous Ethiopian populations regardless of environmental and social status. Diabetic people all over the world are commonly urged to acquire a healthy eating habit, which necessitates lifelong changes in food habits, beliefs, and meal patterns. Dietary management is considered one of the cornerstones of diabetes care, as it is an important component of the overall treatment plan. Choosing and following a healthy diet is important for everyone, especially people with diabetes. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to assess dietary practices and associated factors among type 2 diabetes patients in the west Shewa Zone, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia, in 2022. METHODS: A hospital-based cross-sectional study design was conducted in West Shewa Zone public hospitals among 421 randomly selected type 2 diabetic patients from February 1 to March 30, 2022. Data were collected using a structured and pre-tested interviewer-administered questionnaire. Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate binary logistic regression analyses were done using SPSS. RESULTS: In this study, about 35.6% (95% CI: 30.9–39.9) of type 2 diabetes patients had good dietary practices. Diabetes knowledge (AOR 9 2; 95% CI 4.4–19.4), food-secured households (AOR 3.3; 95% CI 1.6–6.9), high self-efficacy (AOR 6.6; 95% CI 3.2–13.9), diabetes diet information from healthcare professionals (AOR 2.9; 95% CI 1.3–6.4), complete dietary change (AOR = 2.3; 95% CI 1.1–4.8), and female gender (AOR 3.6; 95% CI 1.6–8.1) were independent predictors of good dietary practice. CONCLUSION: The proportion of patients with type 2 diabetes, who attended follow-up at West Shawa Public Hospitals and practiced good dietary habits, was low. Patients' household food insecurity, diabetes knowledge, self-efficacy, source of information on the diabetic diet, complete dietary change after diabetes diagnosis, and gender were all significantly associated with type 2 diabetic patients' dietary practices. Thus, promoting the provision of continuous, modified, and comprehensive education and advice on the importance of diabetes self-management, particularly adherence to dietary recommendations, is fundamental to decreasing the burden of diabetes complications and massive health expenses among diabetic patients.