A new study from researchers at the University of Naples “Federico II” has found that people with lower levels of LDL cholesterol—the type often called “bad cholesterol”—may have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
This surprising link appears even in people who are not taking cholesterol-lowering statin medications.
For many years, doctors have known that statins, while helpful for lowering heart disease risk, can raise the chance of getting type 2 diabetes. But scientists have not fully understood why this happens. Now, by looking more closely at how LDL cholesterol itself relates to diabetes risk, researchers have found new clues.
The researchers looked at past genetic studies that showed people with certain genes that lower LDL cholesterol are more likely to develop diabetes.
On the other hand, people with a rare genetic condition called familial hypercholesterolemia—which causes very high LDL cholesterol—are actually less likely to get type 2 diabetes, even though they face more heart problems. These patterns raised an important question: Is low LDL cholesterol itself linked to diabetes risk, no matter how it is lowered?
To answer this, the team ran a large study that followed over 13,000 adults in Naples, Italy, for more than six years. These participants, aged 19 to 90, were patients at local clinics and had no history of diabetes at the start. About half were already taking statins, and half were not.
Over the course of the study, around 13% of people developed type 2 diabetes. That included about 20% of those on statins and only 6% of those not taking them. But even among those who didn’t take statins, people with lower LDL cholesterol were more likely to develop diabetes than those with higher LDL levels.
The researchers grouped people based on their LDL cholesterol levels. Those with the lowest LDL (below 84 mg/dl) had the highest rates of diabetes. The rates dropped steadily with each higher cholesterol group. The lowest diabetes risk was seen in people with LDL levels of 131 mg/dl or more.
They also found that statin use increased the risk of developing diabetes in every LDL group. However, the biggest jump in diabetes risk from statin use happened in people who started out with very high LDL levels.
This means that while statins do raise diabetes risk, low LDL cholesterol itself may also play a role—whether it’s caused by statins, genes, or other factors. The link between low LDL and higher diabetes risk was seen even in people who weren’t taking cholesterol drugs.
The findings suggest that we may need to think more carefully about how we treat cholesterol, especially in people at risk for diabetes. It doesn’t mean that lowering LDL is bad—high LDL still increases heart disease risk—but it shows that we must also consider the effects on blood sugar and diabetes risk.
In summary, people with very low LDL cholesterol may be more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, even if they don’t take statins. Statin medications do increase diabetes risk, but the overall pattern shows that LDL cholesterol and blood sugar health are connected in complex ways that deserve more attention.
If you care about diabetes, please read studies about bananas and diabetes, and honey could help control blood sugar.
For more health information, please see recent studies about Vitamin D that may reduce dangerous complications in diabetes and results showing plant-based protein foods may help reverse type 2 diabetes.
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