A study of nearly 90,000 adults found those with the highest intake of Neu5Gc, a sugar in red meat, had a 63% higher risk of type 2 diabetes, possibly due to chronic inflammation triggered by an immune response to the foreign substance.
01Summary
- 01Researchers analysed data from 89,953 participants in the French NutriNet-Santé study, with a median follow-up of 7.2 years and 966 new diabetes cases.
- 02Participants in the highest quintile of meat-derived Neu5Gc intake had a 63% greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes than those in the lowest.
- 03The association remained significant after adjusting for lifestyle factors like physical activity and smoking, but weakened when body mass index was included.
- 04Lead author Dr Leopold Fezeu presented the findings at the EASD Annual Meeting in Milan, Italy.
02Why it matters
This research suggests that a little-known sugar in red meat may contribute to diabetes risk through inflammation, independent of body weight, potentially offering a new dietary target for prevention.
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