Fructose Feeds Diabetes

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Georgia, USA) reports that: “In the past 2 decades, managing diabetes has become more expensive.”   As such, increasing scientific interest is focusing on the role of dietary factors in the disease.  A number of previous studies suggest that added sugars, particularly those containing fructose, are a principal driver of diabetes and pre-diabetes, to a greater extent than other carbohydrates. James J. DiNicolantonio, from Saint Luke’s Mid America Heart Institute (Missouri, USA), and colleagues completed a literature review in which the team finds that:  “Added fructose in particular (eg, as a constituent of added sucrose or as the main component of high-fructose sweeteners) may pose the greatest problem for incident diabetes, diabetes-related metabolic abnormalities, and CV risk. Conversely, whole foods that contain fructose (eg, fruits and vegetables) pose no problem for health and are likely protective against diabetes and adverse [cardiovascular] outcomes.”  Submitting that: “There is no need for added fructose or any added sugars in the diet,” the study authors submit that: “Reducing the intake of added sugars could translate to reduced diabetes-related morbidity and premature mortality for populations.”