Researchers are taking a closer look at how different types of dietary fat may influence the risk of type 2 diabetes, a disease that affects millions of people worldwide and is linked to serious health complications and premature death. A new review published in Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism (Cell Press) explores the contrasting effects of two major fatty acids found in the diet: palmitic acid and oleic acid.
The work was led by teams from the CIBER Area for Diabetes and Associated Metabolic Diseases (CIBERDEM) at the University of Barcelona.
"Palmitic acid, a saturated fatty acid widely found in foods, is associated with impaired insulin sensitivity, whereas oleic acid, abundant in olive oil, may have a protective effect against these metabolic disorders," says Professor Manuel Vázquez-Carrera, from the UB's Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences, the UB Institute of Biomedicine (IBUB), the Sant Joan de Déu Research Institute (IRSJD) and CIBERDEM.
Other contributors include Ricardo Rodríguez-Calvo of CIBERDEM at the Pere Virgili Institute for Health Research (IISPV), Marta Tajes of the CIBER Area for Cardiovascular Diseases (CIBERCV) at the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), and Walter Wahli of the University of Lausanne (Switzerland).
