High Salt Intake Linked To Diabetes Risk: Study

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High salt intake linked to diabetes risk: Study

Besides high blood pressure, high intake of salt may be associated with an increased risk of developing diabetes, researchers have found

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Sep, 2017 ) : Besides high blood pressure, high intake of salt may be associated with an increased risk of developing diabetes, researchers have found.

The findings showed that for each 2.5 extra grams of salt (equivalent to each extra gram of sodium) consumed per day, there was an average 43 per cent increase in the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.

People who consumed more than 7.3gm salt a day displayed a 72 per cent increased risk of compared to those with the lowest below 6gm, said researchers from the Institute of Environmental Medicine (IMM), Karolinska Institutet in Sweden.

According to researchers, the association sodium - which makes up 40 per cent of salt - may be because of a direct effect on insulin resistance, and/or by promoting high blood pressure and weight gain, Medical Daily reported.

Further, higher salt intake was also linked with a high risk of developing Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults (LADA)- a form of Type 1 diabetes in which the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas are destroyed by the body's own immune system.

"We confirm an association between sodium intake and type 2 diabetes and that high sodium intake may be a risk factor for LADA, especially in carriers of high risk HLA genotypes," said lead author Bahareh Rasouli from IMM.