New Delhi. To prevent diabetes, women should eat more of green leafy vegetables and whole fruits, and stay away from fruit juices said Dr KK Aggarwal, President Heart Care Foundation of India.

Eating an additional three servings of whole fruit daily or one more serving of spinach, kale or similar leafy green vegetables was tied to a lower risk of developing diabetes over an 18–year period among 71,346 women enrolled in the Nurses’ Health Study.

Dr Lydia A. Bazzano of Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, New Orleans analyzed data on the diets of Nurses’ Health Study participants –– 4,529 of whom developed type 2 diabetes while they were being followed. They divided women into five groups based on fruit and vegetable intake, and also grouped them on the basis of fruit juice consumption.

They found that an increase of three servings a day of whole fruit was associated with an 18 percent lower risk of type 2 diabetes, while a single additional serving of leafy green vegetables cut the risk by 9 percent. However, an additional daily serving of fruit juice increased the likelihood of developing diabetes by 18 percent.

Juice is a big sugar load and it comes in a liquid form which is absorbed rapidly. Caution should be observed in replacing some beverages with fruit juices in an effort to provide healthier options. A 100 percent fruit juice cannot be considered a serving of fruit.