Issue 143 Item 8 Animal Fat Intake Associated With Diabetes Risk

Consumption of animal fat and not carbohydrates appears to be linked to the development of diabetes. That, according to findings published in the February issue of Diabetes.

Dr. Basil G. Karamanos, of Athens University, Greece, and colleagues examined the effect of dietary factors on the development of type 2 diabetes. Included in the study were 204 subjects with recently diagnosed diabetes (RDM), 42 with undiagnosed diabetes (UDM), and 55 with impaired fasting glucose (IFG).

The researchers compared each group of subjects with a matched control group of nondiabetics. Nutritional habits were assessed for all groups. In the RDM group, nutritional habits before diabetes diagnosis were evaluated.

Forty-nine percent of patients in the RDM group had a family history of diabetes, compared with 14.2% of controls (p < 0.001). RDM patients exercised and more often had sedentary professions. Carbohydrate contribution to the energy intake was lower in RDM patients (53.5%) than controls (55.1%; p < 0.05). Conversely, total fat (30.2% versus 27.8%; p < 0.001) and animal fat (12.2% versus 10.8%; p < 0.01) contributed more to energy intake.

Similarly, those with undiagnosed diabetes more frequently had a family history of diabetes than controls (38.1% versus 19.0%; p < 0.01), and more often had sedentary professions. Carbohydrate contribution was also lower among UDM patients (47.6% versus 52.8%; p < 0.005), while total fat (34.7% versus 30.4%; p < 0.05) and animal fat (14.2% versus 10.6%; p < 0.05) contributed more to energy intake.

"IGF differed only in the prevalence of family history of diabetes (32.7% versus 16.4%; p < 0.05)," Dr. Karamanos and colleagues report.

Thus, they conclude that "increased animal fat in the diet may contribute to increased incidence of diabetes." Diabetes Care 2003;26:302-307.