Date of Conferral

2021

Degree

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

School

Nursing

Advisor

Melissa Rouse

Abstract

Diabetes, a chronic disease that can lead to many complications, is one of the leading causes of death. Obesity tends to increase the risk of diabetes. Nutritional therapy can not only control diabetes but also prevent it in some cases by decreasing weight. The ketogenic diet is a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet that can prevent and control diabetes. The purpose of this study was to examine the recommendations of medical providers before and after the presentation of educational content on the ketogenic diet as nutritional therapy in prediabetic and diabetic patients. The practice-focused question addressed whether educating medical staff at a family practice clinic about the ketogenic diet in prediabetic and diabetic patients would improve knowledge and the likelihood of recommending the ketogenic diet as a form of diabetes control. Three medical doctors, two nurse practitioners, and three medical assistants attended a class and completed pre surveys and postsurveys. A paired t test was performed, and the mean score on the presurvey was 6.25, while the mean score of the postsurvey was 13.00. The mean difference was 6.75, indicating that there was an increase in willingness to initiate the ketogenic diet in prediabetes and diabetes patients. The p = .001 demonstrates statistical significance which concludes the attendees' positive intent to recommend the ketogenic diet for diabetic and prediabetic patients. The findings of the doctoral project indicate that when medical staff is adequately educated on the benefits of the ketogenic diet as nutritional therapy in diabetic and prediabetic patients, they are more likely to initiate this therapy. The ketogenic diet has the potential to increase diabetic control and decrease chronic medical complications, which may lead to positive social change.

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