Negotiating Diet in Networks: A Cross-European Study of the Experiences of Managing Type 2 Diabetes

Ingrid Ruud Knutsen, I. Christina Foss, Elka Todorova, Poli Roukova, Anne Kennedy, Mari Carmen Portillo, Elena Regaira, Manuel Serrano-Gil, Christos Lionis, Agapi Angelaki, Anne Rogers

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Food and diet are central aspects of diabetes self-management but the relevance of social networks for the way people are supported in their management of type 2 diabetes is often under-acknowledged. In this article, we aimed to explore the coalescences between these two phenomena among people with type 2 diabetes to increase knowledge of interactions within social network related to daily diet. The article is based on 125 qualitative interviews with individuals with type 2 diabetes from five European countries. Based on assumptions that people with chronic illnesses reshape relationships through negotiation, we analyzed negotiations of food at different levels of network. The respondents' reflections indicate that there are complex negotiations that influence self-management and food, including support, knowledge, and relationships within families; attention and openness in social situations; and the premises and norms of society.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)299-310
Number of pages12
JournalQualitative Health Research
Volume27
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2017

Keywords

  • diabetes
  • Europe
  • illness and disease chronic
  • qualitative analysis
  • research cross-language
  • self-care
  • social support

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