Antibiotics Heighten Type 2 Diabetes Risk

Antibiotics may increase the risk of Type 2 diabetes, according to recent findings published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

"In our research, we found people who have Type 2 diabetes used significantly more antibiotics up to 15 years prior to diagnosis compared to healthy controls," study author Kristian Hallundbæk Mikkelsen said in a statement. "Although we cannot infer causality from this study, the findings raise the possibility that antibiotics could raise the risk of Type 2 diabetes. Another equally compelling explanation may be that people develop Type 2 diabetes over the course of years and face a greater risk of infection during that time."

Researchers discovered that some who developed Type 2 diabetes were taking more antibiotics in the years leading up to their diagnosis than those who did not have the condition--a health issue that's characterized by high blood sugar levels in those who do not properly produce enough of the hormone insulin.

In this recent study, researchers tracked antibiotic prescriptions for over 170,000 people who had Type 2 diabetes and for 1.3 million people who did not have diabetes--all by using records from the national health registries in Denmark.

Findings revealed that people who had Type 2 diabetes filled 0.8 prescriptions a year on average. Yet there were only about 0.5 prescriptions per year among the study's control subjects. Furthermore, individuals who filled more prescriptions were more likely to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. However, researchers specifically noticed a link between use of narrow-spectrum antibiotics, including higher use of penicillin V.

"Diabetes is one of the greatest challenges facing modern health care, with a globally increasing incidence," Mikkelsen said. "Further investigation into long-term effect of antibiotic use on sugar metabolism and gut bacteria composition could reveal valuable answers about how to address this public health crisis. Patterns in antibiotic use may offer an opportunity to prevent the development of the disease or to diagnose it early."

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