Meat consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes: the Multiethnic Cohort.

A surge in type 2 diabetes risk is associated with frequent consumption of red meat, processed meat products, and processed poultry.

This study investigated the link between high dietary ingestion of meat and the likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes. Using validated food frequency questionnaires, researchers collated and analyzed data on the meat consumption rates of 75,512 Caucasian, Japanese-Americans, and Native Haiwaiian adult male and female subjects between the ages of 45-75 recruited from the Multiethnic Cohort. The type 2 diabetes hazard ratio was determined in all the subjects who participated in this study.

Researchers discovered the regular consumption of red meat, processed meats, and processed poultry increased the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. In contrast, increased intake of fresh poultry was found to have no significant effect on type 2 diabetes risk in this study. The findings of this study reveal that habitual consumption of meat products may increase an individual's susceptibility to type 2 diabetes.