Plasma metabolite profiles related to plant-based diets and the risk of type 2 diabetes – published online 08/04/2022

Fenglei Wang, Megu Y. Baden, Marta Guasch-Ferré, Clemens Wittenbecher, Jun Li, Yanping Li, Yi Wan, Shilpa N. Bhupathiraju, Deirdre K. Tobias, Clary B. Clish, Lorelei A. Mucci, A. Heather Eliassen, Karen H. Costenbader, Elizabeth W. Karlson, Alberto Ascherio, Eric B. Rimm, JoAnn E. Manson, Liming Liang, Frank B. Hu

Plant-based diets, especially healthy plant-based diets that are rich in whole grains, fruits and vegetables, have been associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes. However, the plasma metabolite profile underlying this association is not clear. In this issue, Wang and Baden et al (https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-022-05692-8) report that the plasma metabolite profile of healthy plant-based diets is associated with lower type 2 diabetes risk and could explain part of the beneficial association of the healthy plant-based diet. Furthermore, several plasma metabolites (such as trigonelline, hippurate, isoleucine and a small set of triacylglycerols) were identified as potential mediators of the association between plant-based diets and type 2 diabetes. The authors conclude that the identified plasma metabolite profile could be used to assess the adherence of and metabolic response to a healthy plant-based diet for type 2 diabetes prevention.

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