Individuals who regularly ingest larger quantities of preservatives found in everyday foods could be at a substantially elevated risk for developing type 2 diabetes, as revealed by an extensive recent investigation. These preservatives are routinely incorporated into processed foods and drinks to prolong their shelf life and maintain freshness. The study was carried out by a collaborative team of experts from Inserm, INRAE, Sorbonne Paris Nord University, Paris Cité University, and Cnam, operating within the Nutritional Epidemiology Research Team known as CRESS-EREN. The results draw from comprehensive health and dietary information gathered from over 100,000 adults participating in the NutriNet-Santé cohort, with the findings detailed in the prestigious journal Nature Communications.
Ubiquitous Role of Preservatives in the Global Food Industry
Preservatives fall under the umbrella of food additives and are extensively utilized across the worldwide food supply chain to prevent deterioration. Their integration is remarkably widespread. For instance, in 2024, the Open Food Facts World database cataloged approximately 3.5 million different food and beverage items, with more than 700,000 of them containing at least one type of preservative. This highlights just how pervasive these substances have become in modern diets.
Classification of Preservative Additives into Key Categories
In their detailed examination, the Inserm researchers categorized preservative additives into two primary classifications. The initial category encompasses non-antioxidant preservatives, which work by inhibiting spoilage through the suppression of microbial proliferation or by decelerating chemical reactions within the food itself. The other category comprises antioxidant additives, designed to safeguard food quality by minimizing or regulating oxygen exposure during packaging and storage.
On product ingredient lists, these substances are generally identified by their European numbering codes, ranging from E200 to E299 for traditional preservatives and from E300 to E399 for those with antioxidant properties.
Motivations Behind the Scientific Scrutiny of Preservatives
Prior laboratory-based experiments have sparked worries that certain preservatives might damage cellular structures or genetic material and disrupt standard metabolic functions. Nevertheless, robust evidence directly connecting the consumption of these preservatives to the onset of type 2 diabetes in sizable human groups had been scarce prior to this research.
To delve deeper into this possible association, a team spearheaded by Mathilde Touvier, who serves as an Inserm Research Director, scrutinized prolonged exposure to food preservatives and its correlation with type 2 diabetes occurrences, leveraging in-depth data from the NutriNet-Santé study.
Longitudinal Monitoring of Dietary Habits and Health Outcomes
This investigation tracked more than 100,000 adults from France over a span from 2009 to 2023. The participants consistently shared updates on their medical backgrounds, socio-demographic profiles, levels of physical activity, daily lifestyle choices, and general well-being.
In addition, they furnished meticulous dietary logs spanning numerous 24-hour intervals. These logs specified the exact names and brands of commercially produced food items they had eaten. The research team validated this data by consulting various databases such as Open Food Facts, Oqali, and EFSA, while also incorporating quantitative assessments of additives present in foods and drinks. Such a methodology enabled precise calculations of each individual’s extended exposure to preservatives over time.
Comprehensive Assessment of Preservative Intake Levels
Throughout the entirety of the dietary records, the scientists pinpointed a total of 58 additives related to preservatives. This selection comprised 33 core preservatives and 27 antioxidant varieties. Out of these, 17 specific preservatives underwent individual evaluation since they were present in the diets of at least 10% of the cohort.
The statistical models incorporated a wide array of confounding variables that might affect diabetes susceptibility, such as participants’ ages, genders, educational attainments, smoking statuses, alcohol consumption patterns, and holistic dietary profiles including caloric intake, sugar levels, salt content, saturated fat amounts, and fiber consumption, among others.
Observed Diabetes Incidence and Associated Risk Elevations
During the observation window, 1,131 instances of type 2 diabetes were recorded among the 108,723 individuals involved.
When contrasted with those exhibiting the lowest preservative consumption, participants with elevated intakes demonstrated a significantly heightened likelihood of type 2 diabetes development. In aggregate, preservative intake correlated with a 47% elevated risk. Specifically, non-antioxidant preservatives were tied to a 49% risk increase, whereas antioxidant additives showed a 40% higher risk association.
Individual Preservatives Linked to Increased Diabetes Danger
Of the 17 preservatives scrutinized on an individual basis, elevated consumption of 12 was linked to greater type 2 diabetes risk. This roster included prevalent non-antioxidant preservatives such as potassium sorbate (E202), potassium metabisulphite (E224), sodium nitrite (E250), acetic acid (E260), sodium acetates (E262), and calcium propionate (E282). It also featured antioxidant additives like sodium ascorbate (E301), alpha-tocopherol (E307), sodium erythorbate (E316), citric acid (E330), phosphoric acid (E338), and rosemary extracts (E392).
Insights from the Research Leaders
‘This represents the inaugural global study exploring the relationship between preservative additives and the emergence of type 2 diabetes. While further validation is essential, these outcomes align closely with prior experimental findings indicating the adverse impacts of various such compounds,’ states Mathilde Touvier, Inserm research director and the project’s lead coordinator.
‘On a larger scale, these fresh insights bolster existing evidence advocating for a thorough reevaluation of regulatory frameworks overseeing food additive usage by industry stakeholders, ultimately to enhance safeguards for consumers,’ notes Anaïs Hasenböhler, a PhD candidate at EREN who spearheaded these analyses.
‘This research further reinforces the guidance from the National Nutrition and Health Programme, urging individuals to prioritize fresh, minimally processed foods and to curtail the intake of non-essential additives wherever feasible,’ summarizes Mathilde Touvier.
The project received financial support from the European Research Council under its ERC ADDITIVES grant, the National Cancer Institute, and the French Ministry of Health.
