Breastfeeding reduces the risk of type 1 diabetes

Research on the role of diet in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes is usually insufficiently evidenced, but there are some high-quality studies that show that long-term breastfeeding and later intake of gluten may reduce the risk of disease

More and more children are suffering from autoimmune disease type 1 diabetes

Research on the role of diet in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes has not yet produced any clear results

Anna Maria Lampousi, the first author of the study and a doctoral student at the Institute of Environmental Medicine, said: "Our meta-analysis shows that breastfeeding and the subsequent addition of gluten may have a protective effect on type 1 diabetes

26 dietary factors analyzed

The researchers screened 5,935 articles published in medical journals as of October 2020

In total, 26 dietary factors were evaluated, such as breastfeeding, age at which different foods were consumed, intrauterine nutrient exposure, and children's diet

The strongest evidence shows that the longer breastfeeding and the later addition of gluten, the lower the risk of type 1 diabetes

The researchers did not study which mechanism could explain this association

Milk and fruit

The review also found that among children who had only breastfed for at least two months and then started using milk, medium-quality gluten was associated with a reduced risk of type 1 diabetes (after two to three months of age) and fruit (four to three months of age).

"Through this meta-analysis, we are trying to interpret which dietary factors are associated with the risk of type 1 diabetes.

“ Dietary factors and risk of islet autoimmunity and type 1 diabetes: a systematic review and meta-analysis ”, Anna-Maria Lampousi, Sofia Carlsson, Josefin E.