High Salt Intake Leads to Autoimmune Diabetes

High sodium intake is associated with an increased risk for latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA), according to a recent study.

The study results were presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes last week.
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This study is the first to examine whether sodium can increase the risk for LADA, although previous research has hinted at a link between sodium and an autoimmune response.

For their study, the researchers analyzed data from the Swedish-based Epidemiological Study of Risk Factors of LADA and Type 2 Diabetes (ESTRID) study, which compared 355 participants with LADA and 1136 participants with type 2 diabetes with 1379 healthy controls.

Daily energy and nutritional intake were evaluated using a food frequency questionnaire; sodium intake was analyzed as grams per day.

After analyzing the data, the researchers found that sodium intake was associated with an increased risk for LADA. Participants in the highest quartile of sodium intake had a 2-fold risk for LADA vs those in the lowest quartile, and those with high-risk human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genotypes in the highest quartile had a nearly 4-fold increased risk.

“Our findings suggest that high sodium intake may be a risk factor for LADA, especially in carriers of high-risk HLA genotypes,” the researchers concluded. “We could also confirm an association between sodium intake and [type 2 diabetes]. If confirmed in other populations, these findings may have important implications in the primary prevention of diabetes with adult onset.”

—Amanda Balbi

Reference:

Martinell M, Rosengren A, Tuomi T, et al. Sodium intake and the risk of type 2 diabetes and latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA). Paper presented at: European Association for the Study of Diabetes; September 11-15, 2017; Lisbon, Portugal. https://www.easd.org/virtualmeeting/home.html#!resources/sodium-intake-and-the-risk-of-type-2-diabetes-and-latent-autoimmune-diabetes-in-adults-lada. Accessed September 18, 2017.