Originally published February 6 2006
Researchers uncover the process that links fatty foods to diabetes
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Jamey Marth, a professor of cellular and molecular medicine at the University of California at San Diego, has led other scientists in a study of fatty foods that shows the link between such foods and the development of type 2 diabetes.
Diets high in fat can disrupt blood sugar levels and trigger diabetes, researchers said in a study on Wednesday that helps explain the link between obesity and a disease typically linked to sugar.
Fatty foods can suppress an enzyme crucial to the production of insulin, which regulates sugar in the blood, according to scientists at the University of California at San Diego.
Experts have said obese people are up to 80 times more likely to develop diabetes, and both conditions are on the rise.
The new findings, published in the journal Cell, offer another explanation of exactly how the two are linked.
a molecular trigger which begins the chain of events leading from hyperglycemia to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes," said Jamey Marth, a professor of cellular and molecular medicine at the university.
"This finding suggests new approaches to the prevention and treatment of diabetes," said Marth, an investigator with the nonprofit medical research organization Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which helped fund the research.
Marth and his colleagues studied the glycosyltransferase enzyme (GnT-4a), which helps the pancreas sense how much sugar is in the blood and release enough insulin to help process it.
In a study of normal mice that were fed a fatty diet, researchers found that the enzyme was repressed, leaving pancreatic cells unable to sense sugar levels and leading to diabetes.
"Our findings suggest that the current human epidemic in type 2 diabetes may be a result of GnT-4a enzyme deficiency," said Marth, adding that people who inherit a faulty gene that controls the enzyme may also be vulnerable to diabetes.
It may also play a role in the early onset of type 2 diabetes in children and teenagers, according to the study, which was also sponsored by the National Institutes of Health.
All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. Truth Publishing LLC takes sole responsibility for all content. Truth Publishing sells no hard products and earns no money from the recommendation of products. NaturalNews.com is presented for educational and commentary purposes only and should not be construed as professional advice from any licensed practitioner. Truth Publishing assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. For the full terms of usage of this material, visit www.NaturalNews.com/terms.shtml