The Effects of Snack Control Education and Telephone Coaching on Self-Management, Social Support, Self-Efficacy, and Blood Glucose in Diabetes Patients

Abstract

Dietary therapy for diabetes is the most basic way to manage blood glucose. Currently, the nutritional intake rate of diabetic patients in Korea is beyond the recommended rate of the Korean Diabetes Association, showing large amounts of carbohydrates in foods consumed as snacks with an additional focus on sugar. Thus, it is necessary to support healthy dietary habits through snack control. This study is a random assignment experimental study with a total of 56 participants; 28 participants were in the control group, while the remaining 28 patients had type 2 diabetes and had visited Kyung Hee University Hospital. The experimental group with snack control education and telephone coaching exhibited a higher self-management score (t = –9.494, <i>P</i> < 0.001), perceived social support score (t = 7.201, <i>P</i> < 0.001), and self-efficacy score (t = 7.185, <i>P</i> < 0.001) than the control group. Additionally, the experimental group showed lower levels of glycosylated hemoglobin and average blood glucose compared to the control group (t = –4.820, <i>P</i> < 0.001). Thus, snack control education and telephone coaching are effective in improving diabetes self-management behavior, perceived social support, self-efficacy, and reducing glycosylated hemoglobin and average blood glucose. These results confirm the usefulness of snack education materials, and I suggest snack control education as a means of arbitration to improve the self-care of diabetics.