Interaction Between Dietary Iron Intake and Genetically Determined Iron Overload: Risk of Islet Autoimmunity and Progression to Type 1 Diabetes in the TEDDY Study - Centre for Population Health Research (POPC) - A joint centre by the University of Turku and the municipal authority of the Hospital District of Southwest Finland. The goal of Centre for Population Health Research is to promote health and well-being of society by enhancing research and development work on clinical-epidemiological population research.

Diabetes Care. 2023 May 1;46(5):1014-1018. doi: 10.2337/dc22-1359.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether iron intake and genetically determined iron overload interact in predisposing to the development of childhood islet autoimmunity (IA) and type 1 diabetes (T1D).

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: In The Environmental Determinants of Diabetes in the Young (TEDDY) study, 7,770 genetically high-risk children were followed from birth until the development of IA and progression to T1D. Exposures included energy-adjusted iron intake in the first 3 years of life and a genetic risk score (GRS) for increased circulating iron.

RESULTS: We found a U-shaped association between iron intake and risk of GAD antibody as the first autoantibody. In children with GRS ≥2 iron risk alleles, high iron intake was associated with an increased risk of IA, with insulin as first autoantibody (adjusted hazard ratio 1.71 [95% CI 1.14; 2.58]) compared with moderate iron intake.

CONCLUSIONS: Iron intake may alter the risk of IA in children with high-risk HLA haplogenotypes.

PMID:36867433 | PMC:PMC10154662 | DOI:10.2337/dc22-1359