Scientists at Oxford University have discovered that greater consumption of fresh fruit is linked with a lower incidence of diabetes, as well as a reduction in complications among people who already have the disease.
Those who eat fruit daily have a 12 per cent lower risk of developing the disease. And researchers said the news can be positive for those who already have the condition, with regular fruit eaters 17 per cent less likely to die of it.
Last night medical experts welcomed the findings.Dr Emily Burns, Diabetes UK's Research Communications Manager, said: "Fresh fruit has many health benefits and it's a myth that people with diabetes should not eat it. The type of sugar in whole fruit is different to the added sugar we should avoid.
"We know that a balanced diet is beneficial for overall health and preventing Type 2 diabetes."
The benefits of eating fruit and vegetables are well established.
However the sugar content of fruit has led to uncertainty about associated risks of diabetes and vascular complications.Now, after studying more than half a million people, the Oxford research team have concluded it is beneficial - the first study to make such a direct link.
The findings, published in the journal PLOS Medicine, showed people who eat plenty of fresh fruit had a lower risk of developing diabetes in comparison with other participants.
The team recruited more than 500,000 adults from ten widely different areas across China - where many people still eat little fruit - and tracked their health for seven years.
Study leader Dr Huaidong Du said: "Among individuals who were free of diabetes at the start of the study daily consumption of fresh fruit was associated with a 12 per cent lower relative risk of developing it, compared to never or rarely consuming fresh fruit."The doctor added that in people who already had diabetes, consuming fresh fruit more than three days a week was associated with a 17 per cent lower relative risk of dying than those who ate it less than once a day.
And the risk of diabetes-related complications affecting large blood vessels - such as strokes or heart, kidney and eye disease - was up to 28 per cent lower.About four million people in the UK have diabetes, 90 per cent of them with Type 2.
Type 1 is an auto-immune disease which cannot currently be cured, whereas lifestyle changes such as exercise and good diet can help avoid Type 2.
But experts warn Britain is sitting on a diabetes timebomb with the number of prescriptions for Type 2 sufferers soaring by a third to 35 million in five years.
Analysis also shows that there are blackspots such as Newham in East London, which has twice the national average of prescriptions.
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