Wheaten soda bread is preferred by Irish adults with diabetes

Most respondents (90 %) reported consuming bread every day. A minority (32 %) of respondents reported reading the label on bread, with sugar, fat and salt content the three most-frequently-checked constituents. A significant association was noted between the type of bread most commonly consumed and habitation setting (urban and rural; P = 0.005) and with gender (P = 0.005). Wheaten–soda was reported to be the most-commonly-eaten bread; 64.7% of those with a rural address and 27.7 % of those with an urban address. No respondent with a rural address reported white bread to be the preference, compared with 24.1% of those with an urban address. White bread was reported less commonly by females (14.7%) than by males (22.7 %) and females were more likely to report granary–multigrain (17.6%) than were males (1.5%). These findings indicate that awareness of the whole-grain content of breads is poor among Irish adults with type 2 diabetes. Dietetic education should focus on increasing awareness of the whole-grain content of breads. Further research is required to establish both the actual whole-grain content of, and the glycaemic response to, breads most commonly consumed by this population.