Generous intake of diets rich in processed and unprocessed red meat may elevate type 2 diabetes development risk.

This study investigated the role of processed and unprocessed red meat in the development of type 2 diabetes in younger and middle-aged women. Using validated food frequency questionnaires, researchers examined the diets of 94,246 US women between the ages of 26-46 years. The type 2 diabetes hazard ratio of each subject was also determined.

Researchers discovered that a greater type 2 diabetes risk was associated with high dietary ingestion of processed meats, such as bacon and hot dog. A diet characterized with high total red meat intake was also found to increase the risk of developing diabetes mellitus. The results of this study indicate that increased consumption of both unprocessed and processed red meat may increase women’s susceptibility to the development of type 2 diabetes.