Abstract
Type 2 diabetes (T2D) has increased dramatically in the last 20 years afflicting more than 425 million people all over the world with 34 million located in the US, emphasizing the need for strategic therapies including dietary prescriptions or other lifestyle changes to reduce these numbers. In addition to abnormally high plasma glucose levels, high concentrations of glycosylated hemoglobin and insulin resistance, T2D is also characterized by dyslipidemias, oxidative stress, and low-grade systemic inflammation. Insulin resistance and inflammation in T2D can lead to cardiac problems, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and kidney failure. T2D can be controlled by modifying current unhealthy practices by focusing on wholesome diets, exercise regimes and maintenance of a healthy body weight. In this review, we aim to demonstrate how specific dietary prescriptions including carbohydrate restriction, the Mediterranean diet, plant-based diets and the dietary approaches to treat hypertension (DASH) can improve not just the inflammatory response and reduce the biomarkers of inflammation but also have additional benefits on insulin resistance, weight loss, plasma lipids and blood pressure. In addition, the mechanistic evaluation of specific nutrients including antioxidants (polyphenols and carotenoids), certain fatty acids and vitamins and their exclusive role in decreasing inflammation will be discussed.