Fruits and vegetables diet improves some selected haemorheological parameters predisposing to cardiovascular disease in non insulin dependent diabetes mellitus NIDDM subjects.

: Fruits and vegetables have been shown to contain vital components that moderate disease conditions. However, there is dearth of information of these effects in Africans diabetic subjects. Thus, we investigated the relative effect of fruits and vegetables on some selected heamorological factors associated with cardiovascular disease in diabetic subjects. Thirty diabetic subjects were selected at the cardiovascular clinic of Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu, Nigeria. The subjects with mean Fasting Blood Glucose (FBG) level of 7.8 +/- 0.95 mmold L(-1) were placed on 300 g of fruits and vegetables per day, while they continued their normal medication and food intake. A significant difference (p 0.05) was observed in haematocrit, 44.75 +/- 1.44 to 42.70 +/- 1.24, Fibrinogen, 254.5 +/- 3.98 to 250.57 +/- 3.16 mg dL(-1). The results showed that regular intake of fruits and vegetables by diabetic subjects may reduce cardiovascular risk factors.