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# Trans fat boosts type 2 diabetes mellitus risk
- URL: https://www.foodconsumer.org/trans_fat_type_2_diabetes_mellitus_0619130716/
- Published: 2013-06-19T08:15:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-22T16:05:34.000Z
- Description: Harvard researchers followed 84,204 women for 14 years and found a 2 percent increase in energy from trans fat associated with a 39 percent higher risk of type 2 diabetes, while a 5 percent increase from polyunsaturated fat was linked to 37 percent lower risk.
- Author: Food Consumer
- Tags: Chemical, Food Safety, #vivvo-import

Wednesday June 19, 2013 (foodconsumer.org) -- Eating foods with trans fat may increase the risk for developing type 2 diabetes mellitus, according to a study released in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Frank B Hu from Harvard School of Public Health, Boston and colleagues conducted the study and found 2% increase in energy from trans fat was associated with a 39% increased risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus in women.

Type 2 diabetes is a disease in which the patient can produce insulin, but can't effectively handle glucose as healthy individuals. As many as 25 million American are believed to live with this disease in the United States and the disease can lead to a range of serious complications including heart disease.

Tran fat, also known as partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, has been known to be implicated in more than 100,000 deaths from heart disease every year in the United States, according to research by Harvard University.

The current study was intended to examine the association between specific types of dietary fat and the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus. The study involved 84204 women aged 34 to 59 with no diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease or cancer at baseline. Participants were surveyed for their detailed dietary information at baseline (1980), and updated three times (1984, 1986, and 1990). During 14 years of follow-up, 2507 incident cases of type 2 diabetes mellitus were identified.

The research analyzed the data and found that participants who had a 2% increase in energy from trans fatty acids were 39 percent more likely to develop diabetes type 2\. Additionally, they found 5% increase in energy from polyunsaturated fat was associated with 37% reduced risk for the disease.

When 2% of energy from trans fat was replaced isosynergistically with polyunsaturated fatty acids, the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus was reduced by 40%, meaning that use polyunsaturated fat instead of trans fat can eliminate the risk from trans fat.

Also, the researchers did not find an association between total fat, saturated fat, monounsaturated fat and the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus in women.

The research concluded "These data suggest that total fat and saturated and monounsaturated fatty acid intakes are not associated with risk of type 2 diabetes in women, but that trans fatty acids increase and polyunsaturated fatty acids reduce risk. Substituting nonhydrogenated polyunsaturated fatty acids for trans fatty acids would likely reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes substantially."

Food manufacturers have been trying to replace trans fat with something that seems to be more friendly to health. Hydrogenated fat and other fats are used instead of partially hydrogenated fat (trans fat). It should be noted that hydrogenated fat still contains some trans fat. Also the Food and Drug Administration allows the claiming of zero trans fat when a serving of food contains less than 0.5 grams of trans fat. So zero trans fat does not always really mean zero trans fat.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a health condition that is easy to avoid. Recent research found eating red meat can increase the risk for the disease, particularly in men. (reporting by David Liu, PHD)