Date: 25/03/2026 Location: Other
Diabetes is a leading chronic health issue in Australia, affecting over 1.5-2 million adults (6.6%, or one in 15), with prevalence up from 5.1% a decade ago and true rates potentially 35% higher due to andgt;40% undiagnosed cases. General practitioners (GPs) manage ~90% of cases in primary care and are central to diagnosis, monitoring, and counselling. Nutrition and lifestyle interventions are pivotal for prevention, management, and reversal of diabetes, but only 43% of patients receive nutrition advice, with 34% reporting behaviour change. Australian GPs report barriers beyond training, including time constraints and limited confidence in delivering nutrition counselling, despite recognising its importance. Nutrition remains under-embedded in training, despite RACGP Curriculum emphasis. Robust evidence supports plant-based diets—rich in whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables—for diabetes prevention (34% risk reduction), management (HbA1c drops 0.4-1.5%), and reversal (37-43% remission), outperforming standard diets in randomised controlled trials. This way of eating improves insulin sensitivity, lipids, and chronic kidney disease risk, yet GPs rarely counsel it due to unfamiliarity with studies and tools.