PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Study from Fukushima shows even low doses of radiation may contribute to diabetes

10-year study finds increased risk of diabetes among emergency workers at the Fukushima nuclear power plant

2023-10-03
(Press-News.org) New research to be presented at this year’s Annual Meeting of The European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), Hamburg (2-6 Oct), suggests that exposure to low doses of radiation may contribute to an increased risk of diabetes.

The study by Dr Huan Hu and Dr Toshiteru Ohkubo from the Japanese National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health involved more than 6,000 out of around 20,000 emergency workers who responded to the radiation accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, which was hit by a huge tsunami in March 2011.

Substantial amounts of radioactive materials were released into the environment following explosions at the nuclear plant.

In 2014, the Epidemiological Study of Health Effects in Fukushima Emergency Workers (NEWS) was established to clarify the long-term health effects of radiation among emergency workers.

Few human studies have examined the impact of radiation exposure on diabetes development, particularly at low doses. To find out more, researchers examined the association between low-dose radiation exposure and risk of diabetes in 5,326 male emergency workers (average age 46 years) taking part in the NEWS study.

Between March and December 2011, individual emergency worker’s radiation exposure was measured using a pocket alarm dosemeter for external exposure and a whole-body counter for internal exposure.

Study participants underwent regular health examinations involving more than 70 components, including blood sugar, lipids, urine tests, inflammation biomarkers, thyroid function tests, and eye examinations.

Between 2012 and 2021, 392 participants developed diabetes—defined as a fast plasma glucose level of at least 126 mg/dL, an HbA1c level of at least 6.5%, or self-reported diagnosis of diabetes.

The researchers assessed the association between incident diabetes and cumulative radiation exposure after adjusting for a wide range of potential confounders including age, body mass index, smoking, alcohol consumption, leisure-time physical activity, employment at the nuclear power plant, dyslipidaemia (abnormally high levels of fats in the blood), and high blood pressure.

The analysis found that compared with the lowest cumulative low-dose radiation exposure (0-4 millisieverts [mSv]), the risk of developing diabetes was 6% higher for workers exposed to 5-9 mSv, and 47% and 33% greater for those exposed to 10-19 mSv and 20-49 mSv, respectively.

However, no elevated risk was detected in those exposed to radiation doses of 50 mSv or higher, likely due to the small sample size in this group.

“Our findings suggest an increased risk of diabetes among nuclear emergency workers from low levels of radiation. While the potential mechanisms remain somewhat unclear, reports suggest that radiation can adversely affect pancreatic cells responsible for insulin production, potentially contributing to diabetes. Additionally, there is an association between radiation exposure and heightened inflammation, a well-known factor in insulin resistance and the development of diabetes”, explains lead author Dr Hu.  

He adds, “Ongoing follow-up of NEWS participants will provide an even clearer picture of diabetes risk at low radiation doses. As more diabetes cases emerge within our study group, our expanded dataset will enable more robust analyses, allowing researchers to better assess the link between radiation exposure and diabetes risk.”.

In Europe, average background radiation exposure from natural sources including radon gas in homes and cosmic rays from outer space by country ranges from about 2.7 mSv over a year in the UK to more than 7 mSv annually for some groups of people in Finland [1]. In comparison, a single chest x-ray exposes a patient to about 0.1 mSv of radiation, and a single mammogram to 0.4 mSv. Some other imaging tests have higher exposures, including a CT scan of the whole spine (10 mSv) and a PET scan (25 mSv).

The authors note that the findings show observational associations rather than cause and effect and point to several limitations, including the absence of data on diabetes types, potential residual confounding from unaccounted factors or measurement inaccuracies affecting the diabetes-risk and radiation-exposure link. Furthermore, they emphasise the importance of considering selection bias due to the participation of only 30% of emergency workers in the NEWS study. The retrospective design also introduces factors such as information bias, which should be considered when interpreting the results.

Finally, the authors offer their “sincere thanks to the emergency workers who coped with the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant incident, both for their heroic efforts in minimising risks and for their voluntary participation in the NEWS study, which contributes to our understanding of radiation's health effects and public safety.”

Notes to editors:

[1] Ionising radiation: dose comparisons - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

This work was supported by an Industrial Disease Clinical Research grant from the Japan Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare

This press release is based on an oral presentation 24 at the Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Hamburg. All accepted abstracts have been extensively peer reviewed by the congress selection committee. There is no full paper at this stage, but the authors are happy to answer your questions. The research has not yet been submitted to a medical journal for publication. 

 

 

END


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Worldwide audit finds testosterone replacement improves blood sugar control in men with type 2 diabetes

2023-10-03
Real-world data from an ongoing international audit of testosterone deficiency in men with type 2 diabetes, being presented at this year’s Annual Meeting of The European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), Hamburg (2-6 Oct), suggests that testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) improves glycaemic control for up to 2 years. The early data from 37 centres across 8 countries who have so far joined the Association of British Clinical Diabetologists (ABCD) audit [1], suggest that the reason that HbA1c (a measure of average blood sugar levels over the past 2-3 months) continues ...

Semaglutide significantly improves blood sugar control and weight loss in adults with type 2 diabetes for up to 3 years in real-world study

2023-10-03
New research presented at this year’s Annual Meeting of The European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), Hamburg (2-6 Oct), shows that treatment with the drug semaglutide significantly improves blood sugar control and weight loss in adults with type 2 diabetes for up to three years. “Our long-term analysis of semaglutide in a large and diverse cohort of patients with type 2 diabetes found a clinically relevant improvement in blood sugar control and weight loss after 6 months of treatment, comparable with that seen in randomised trials”, says Professor Avraham Karasik from the Institute of Research and Innovation at Maccabi Health Services ...

Drinking dark tea every day may help control blood sugar to reduce diabetes risk

2023-10-03
Drinking dark tea every day may help to mitigate type 2 diabetes risk and progression in adults through better blood sugar control, suggests new research at this year’s Annual Meeting of The European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), Hamburg (2-6 Oct). The study, by researchers from the University of Adelaide in Australia and Southeast University in China, found that compared with never tea drinkers, daily consumers of dark tea had 53% lower risk for prediabetes and 47% reduced risk for type 2 diabetes, even after taking into account established risk factors known to drive the risk for diabetes, including age, ...

UC Riverside startup company wins prestigious NIH grant

UC Riverside startup company wins prestigious NIH grant
2023-10-02
Soon after he joined UC Riverside in 2015, Maurizio Pellecchia, a professor of biomedical sciences in the UCR School of Medicine, began working with the UCR Research and Economic Development office to create on campus an incubator space. He envisioned that space as a home for UCR scientists to create startup companies to prove the commercial potential of their technologies. That multi-year effort helped create in the Multidisciplinary Research Building the EPIC Life Sciences Incubator that currently houses young companies in agricultural technology, biomedical technologies, bioengineering, and medicinal chemistry. One of the tenant companies in the incubator ...

DNA from discarded whale bones suggests loss of genetic diversity due to commercial whaling

DNA from discarded whale bones suggests loss of genetic diversity due to commercial whaling
2023-10-02
Commercial whaling in the 20th century decimated populations of large whales but also appears to have had a lasting impact on the genetic diversity of today’s surviving whales, new research from Oregon State University shows. Researchers compared DNA from a collection of whale bones found on beaches near abandoned whaling stations on South Georgia Island in the south Atlantic Ocean to DNA from whales in the present-day population and found strong evidence of loss of maternal DNA lineages among blue and humpback whales. “A maternal lineage is often associated with an animal’s cultural memories such as feeding and breeding locations that are passed from one generation ...

Viruses dynamic and changing after dry soils are watered

Viruses dynamic and changing after dry soils are watered
2023-10-02
Viruses in soil may not be as destructive to bacteria as once thought and could instead act like lawnmowers, culling older cells and giving space for new growth, according to research out of the University of California, Davis, published Sept. 28 in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution.  How viruses affect ecosystems, including bacteria, is challenging to untangle because they are complex and change over time and space. But the first annual rain on Mediterranean ecosystems, such as those in California, offers a kind of reset, triggering activity that can be observed.  Scientists ...

ACC Quality Summit explores practical strategies to reboot and rebrand health care quality

2023-10-02
The 2023 American College of Cardiology (ACC) Quality Summit kicks off on October 11-13 in Orlando, Florida, putting the spotlight on the value of ACC Accreditation and NCDR services to enhance health care quality. Cardiovascular clinicians and stakeholders across the U.S. will converge at this year’s Summit to discuss the role of accreditation and registries in health equity initiatives, best practices for rebooting and rebranding health care quality, and strategies to engage the CV team in the quality process. “ACC’s ...

One in 3 adults with new-onset AFib occurring during hospitalization will have recurrent episode within a year

2023-10-02
Embargoed for release until 5:00 p.m. ET on Monday 2 October 2023 Annals of Internal Medicine Tip Sheet @Annalsofim Below please find summaries of new articles that will be published in the next issue of Annals of Internal Medicine. The summaries are not intended to substitute for the full articles as a source of information. This information is under strict embargo and by taking it into possession, media representatives are committing to the terms of the embargo not only on their own behalf, but also on behalf of the organization they represent. ---------------------------- 1. ...

Gene expression signatures of human senescent corneal and conjunctival epithelial cells

Gene expression signatures of human senescent corneal and conjunctival epithelial cells
2023-10-02
“[...] our results from the RNA-Seq experiments show that senescent ocular surface cells, particularly SCj, have abnormal keratin expression patterns [...]” A new priority research paper was published on the cover of Aging (listed by MEDLINE/PubMed as "Aging (Albany NY)" and "Aging-US" by Web of Science) Volume 15, Issue 18, entitled, “Gene expression signatures of human senescent corneal and conjunctival epithelial cells.” In this new study, researchers Koji Kitazawa, Akifumi Matsumoto, Kohsaku Numa, Yasufumi Tomioka, Zhixin A. Zhang, Yohei Yamashita, Chie Sotozono, Pierre-Yves Desprez, and ...

Study: Scientists investigate grand canyon's ancient past to predict future climate impacts

Study: Scientists investigate grand canyons ancient past to predict future climate impacts
2023-10-02
The Grand Canyon’s valleys and millions of years of rock layers spanning Earth’s history have earned it a designation as one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. But, according to a new UNLV study, its marvels extend to vast cave systems that lie beneath the surface, which just might hold clues to better understand the future of climate change — by studying nature’s past. A research team — led by UNLV paleoclimatologist and professor Matthew Lachniet — pulled an ancient stalagmite from the floor of an undisturbed Grand Canyon cave. By studying the mineral deposits’ geochemistry, they were able to analyze precipitation patterns during the rapidly ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Heat and heavy metals are changing the way that bees buzz

What’s behind the enormous increase in early-onset gastrointestinal cancers?

Pharmacogenomics expert advances precision medicine for bipolar disorder

Brazilian researcher explores centenarian stem cells for aging insights

Dr. Xuyu Qian's breakthrough analysis of 18 million brain cells advances understanding of human brain development

Gene networks decode human brain architecture from health to glioma

How artificial light at night damages brain health and metabolism

For ultrasound, ultra-strength not always a good thing

Matching your workouts to your personality could make exercising more enjoyable and give you better results

Study shows people perceive biodiversity

Personality type can predict which forms of exercise people enjoy

People can accurately judge biodiversity through sight and sound

People diagnosed with dementia are living longer, global study shows

When domesticated rabbits go feral, new morphologies emerge

Rain events could cause major failure of Waikīkī storm drainage by 2050

Breakthrough in upconversion luminescence research: Uncovering the energy back transfer mechanism

Hidden role of 'cell protector' opens cancer treatment possibilities

How plants build the microbiome they need to survive in a tough environment

Depression due to politics and its quiet danger to democracy addressed in new book 'The Sad Citizen'

International experts and patients unite to help ensure all patients are fully informed before consenting to new surgical procedures

Melting glaciers could trigger more explosive eruptions globally, finds research

Nearly half of U.S. grandchildren live within 10 miles of a grandparent

Study demonstrates low-cost method to remove CO₂ from air using cold temperatures, common materials

Masonic Medical Research Institute (MMRI) welcomes 13 students to prestigious Summer Fellowship program

Mass timber could elevate hospital construction

A nuanced model of soil moisture illuminates plant behavior and climate patterns

$2.6 million NIH grant backs search for genetic cure in deadly heart disease

Pennsylvania’s medical cannabis program changed drastically when anxiety was added as a qualifying condition

1 in 5 overweight adults could be reclassified with obesity according to new framework

Findings of study on how illegally manufactured fentanyl enters U.S. contradict common assumptions, undermining efforts to control supply

[Press-News.org] Study from Fukushima shows even low doses of radiation may contribute to diabetes
10-year study finds increased risk of diabetes among emergency workers at the Fukushima nuclear power plant