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Updated: Jan 25, 2026

Saturated Fatty Acids Induce Ceramide-associated Macrophage Cell Death
Published on: October 31, 2017
Circulating Saturated Fatty Acids and Incident Type 2 Diabetes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Lihua Huang1, Jie-Sheng Lin2, Izzuddin M Aris3,4,5
1Department of Medical Statistics and Epidemiology, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Health Assessment, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food, Nutrition and Health, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, China. hlihua2@mail2.sysu.edu.cn.
Abstract:
The effect of saturated fatty acids (SFAs) on incident type 2 diabetes (T2D) is controversial and few have systematically appraised the evidence. We conducted a comprehensive search of prospective studies examining these relationships that were published in PubMed, Web of Science, or EMBASE from 21 February 1989 to 21 February 2019. A total of 19 studies were included for systematic review and 10 for meta-analysis. We estimated the summarized relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) using a random (if I2 > 50%) or a fixed effects model (if I2 ≤ 50%). Although the included studies reported inconclusive results, the majority supported a protective effect of odd-chain and an adverse impact of even-chain SFAs. Meta-analysis showed that the per standard deviation (SD) increase in odd-chain SFAs was associated with a reduced risk of incident T2D (C15:0: 0.86, 0.76-0.98; C17:0: 0.76, 0.59-0.97), while a per SD increase in one even-chain SFA was associated with an increased risk of incident T2D (C14:0: 1.13, 1.09-1.18). No associations were found between other SFAs and incident T2D. In conclusion, our findings suggest an overall protective effect of odd-chain SFAs and the inconclusive impact of even- and very-long-chain SFAs on incident T2D.
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