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Worried about your risk of type 2 diabetes? New research suggests you might want to rethink the types of meat you’re eating.
Regularly eating red and processed meat, in particular, is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, according to an analysis of data from 31 study cohorts published Tuesday in the journal The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology.
The study is the most comprehensive to date showing an association between processed meat and unprocessed red meat and type 2 diabetes, Dr. Nita Forouhi, professor of population health and nutrition at the University of Cambridge in the UK and lead author of the study, said in an email.
Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs when blood sugar levels are regularly too high and is the most common type of diabetes, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. If not managed, type 2 diabetes can lead to problems like heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease.
Dr Hilda Mulroney, a lecturer in nutrition and health at London Metropolitan University, who was not involved in the study, said in a news release that more questions need to be asked about meat, including the risks posed by chicken and the effects of different cooking methods.
But the new study is in line with current nutritional guidelines that recommend reducing meat intake, Mulroney said.
Because the study was observational, the researchers couldn’t conclude that meat consumption directly caused diabetes, Mulroney said.
But the association is strong, Forouhi said, noting that “these findings were consistent across populations and countries around the world.”
The researchers analysed data from nearly two million people in 20 countries. The team also “considered factors such as diet quality, physical activity, smoking, alcohol intake, energy intake and BMI that may influence the results and exaggerate or mask the association between meat and type 2 diabetes,” Forouhi added.
But the data failed to take into account other factors that may contribute to type 2 diabetes, such as family history, insulin resistance and waist circumference, says nutritionist Duane Mellor, PhD, a spokesman for the British Dietetic Association and honorary academic fellow at Aston University in the UK, who was not involved in the study.
These factors were more strongly associated with the risk of developing diabetes than factors the researchers were able to account for, he added in a news release.
“The increased risk associated with processed meat and red meat consumption may be the result of these other confounding factors,” Mellor said.
Despite these limitations, new research evidence and current dietary recommendations strongly argue for reducing meat intake, Mulrooney said.
“Meat consumption generally exceeds dietary guidelines,” she said, “which also recommend replacing red and processed meats with meats such as chicken, as well as reducing overall meat consumption by using alternatives such as peas, beans, lentils and tofu.”
There’s no definitive research yet on whether chicken consumption is linked to the risk of type 2 diabetes, but recent studies have shown that replacing red and processed meat with chicken may lower the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, Mulroney added.
“Processed meats such as ham, sausage, bacon, hot dogs, salami and pepperoni are typically highly processed, contain chemical additives, are high in salt and are well known to have a variety of negative health effects,” Forouhi said.
There are many ways to reduce your intake, she added, including “eating these meats less frequently, reducing the portions you eat and substituting protein-rich alternatives.”
Mellor says that people concerned about diabetes should make sure to incorporate regular exercise as well as eating a diet rich in vegetables, fruit, nuts and legumes.
