Adherence
A diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes triggers a statistically significant but small reduction in household calorie purchases (approx. 2%), resulting in an estimated 4.3 to 8.3 pounds of weight loss in the first year, which is only about 10% of the reduction suggested by medical guidelines.
If you are diagnosed with diabetes, expect your diet to improve slightly, but do not expect it to fix itself. You will likely lose a small amount of weight (4-8 lbs) initially, but this is far less than doctors suggest. To get better results, do not try to eat 'healthier' in general; instead, identify your top 1-2 unhealthy food categories and focus exclusively on reducing them.
Households engage in statistically significant but small calorie reductions following diagnosis. The changes are sufficient to lose 4 to 8 pounds in the first year, but are only about 10% of what would be suggested by a doctor.
Why this rating
Uses large-scale household scanner data with fixed effects, though limited to purchased food and inferred diagnosis.
Source
Diabetes and Diet: Behavioral Response and the Value of Health
Emily Oster · National Bureau of Economic Research · 2015
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