Does Red Meat Cause Type II Diabetes?

Mark Hyman

Feb 9, 2024

Episode description

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Recently, a study made headlines linking red meat consumption to an increased risk for type 2 diabetes. It’s no secret that navigating the realm of nutrition has become a challenge for the general public.

That’s why, on today’s Health Bites episode, we’re diving deep into the findings from this study, “Red meat intake and risk of type 2 diabetes in a prospective cohort study of United States females and males,” published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. I unpack the study’s design flaws, inaccuracies, and where the researchers got it straight up wrong.

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In this episode, I discuss (audio version / Apple Subscriber version):

What we can and cannot learn from observational research (3:42 / 1:56)
“Red meat intake and risk of type 2 diabetes in a prospective cohort study of United States females and males” study design and findings (9:01 / 7:15)
Issues with the study design and why it does not prove that red meat causes type 2 diabetes (20:01 / 16:23)
What have other studies found? (39:20 / 35:42)
The root cause of type 2 diabetes (44:02 / 40:24)
Strategies to address type 2 diabetes (44:29 / 40:51)

Mindsip insights from this episode:

Understand diet context to halve death risk

In a study of 11,000 health food store shoppers, both vegetarians and healthy meat-eaters had their risk of death reduced by half, suggesting diet context is key.

#nutrition

#risk

Utilize Function Health for comprehensive biomarker testing

The service Function Health provides direct-to-consumer testing for over 110 biomarkers, including insulin and lipid particle size, which are often not tested by doctors.

#blood-test

#testing

Seek significant risk increases before drawing conclusions

An observational study showing a 20% increased risk is relatively meaningless; you should look for at least a 200% increase before considering it significant.

#risk

#study

Preserve traditional diets to prevent diabetes

The Maasai in Africa, who traditionally ate only blood, milk, and meat, had no diabetes until the introduction of Coca-Cola and processed foods.

#diabetes

#processed-food

Critique inflated red meat risk statistics in media headlines

Researchers statistically 'calibrated' the data in a recent study, which doubled the reported risk of red meat, and these inflated numbers were used in media headlines.

#red-meat

#risk

Recognize healthy user bias in red meat consumption studies

People who avoid red meat often have other healthy habits like exercising more and not smoking, making it difficult to isolate red meat as the cause of disease.

#research

Critique study for excluding sugar and grains in diabetes analysis

The study linking red meat to diabetes bizarrely excluded grains and sugar from its analysis, ignoring the most established dietary causes of the disease.

#diabetes

#study

Rethink red meat intake based on trial findings

A meta-analysis of higher-quality randomized controlled trials found red meat intake had no significant impact on blood sugar, insulin, or inflammation markers.