People with Type 2 diabetes face many health challenges, but one of the most serious is the increased risk of heart disease.
Diabetes affects the way the body uses and stores energy, and over time it can damage blood vessels and organs throughout the body.
The heart is particularly vulnerable. Many people with diabetes eventually develop heart failure, a condition in which the heart becomes too weak or too stiff to pump blood effectively.
Because of this, researchers around the world are searching for new ways to protect heart health before serious damage occurs.
A new study presented at the British Cardiovascular Society conference in Manchester suggests that a low-cost supplement called mitoquinone may help.
The findings are still early, but they offer hope that a simple and widely available supplement could one day become part of diabetes care.
The research was carried out by scientists at the University of Leeds. The team studied 70 adults with Type 2 diabetes over a four-month period. None of the participants had been diagnosed with heart disease before joining the study.
This allowed researchers to investigate whether the supplement could help prevent early heart problems before they became serious.
Half of the participants were given a daily 40-milligram dose of mitoquinone while continuing their usual diabetes treatment. The remaining participants continued with their standard diabetes care but did not receive the supplement. At the end of the study, researchers performed heart scans and other tests to compare the two groups.
The results showed several encouraging signs. The hearts of people taking mitoquinone were able to use energy about 15 percent more efficiently while at rest. This is important because the heart needs a constant supply of energy to keep pumping blood around the body. When the heart becomes less efficient, it can become strained and may eventually fail.
Researchers also found improvements when participants exercised. The heart muscle of people taking the supplement was able to relax more quickly after each heartbeat.
Healthy relaxation of the heart muscle is important because it allows the chambers of the heart to fill properly with blood before the next beat. Slow relaxation can be an early warning sign of heart stiffness and future heart failure.
In contrast, the group that received only their usual diabetes treatment did not show these improvements. This difference suggests that mitoquinone may have played an important role in improving heart function.
Mitoquinone is a type of antioxidant. Antioxidants help protect cells from damage caused by harmful molecules that are produced naturally during normal body processes.
In people with diabetes, high blood sugar levels and changes in metabolism can increase this damage, creating what scientists call metabolic stress. Over many years, this stress can injure heart cells and reduce the heart’s ability to work properly.
Although mitoquinone is already sold as a supplement and is sometimes promoted for boosting energy or healthy aging, there has been limited scientific evidence showing that it can help people with chronic diseases. This study provides some of the strongest evidence so far that the supplement may have real benefits for heart health in people with diabetes.
Dr. Henry Procter, who led the research, said the findings are encouraging because they suggest mitoquinone could help keep the heart healthier for longer. He noted that if the study had continued for a longer period, the benefits might have become even more noticeable.
Safety was another positive finding. Researchers reported no major side effects among the participants. The supplement also did not appear to interfere with blood sugar control, which is especially important for people managing diabetes.
No participants developed serious heart problems during the study, although the researchers caution that the trial was relatively small and lasted only four months.
The need for better heart protection in diabetes is significant. In the United Kingdom alone, around 5.8 million people live with diabetes, and about 90 percent have Type 2 diabetes.
People with this condition are up to five times more likely to develop heart failure than people without diabetes. Once heart failure develops, the outlook can become much more serious. Studies have shown that people who have both diabetes and heart failure face a much higher risk of early death.
Professor Bryan Williams of the British Heart Foundation described the findings as interesting and promising. He said the results highlight why researchers must continue exploring every possible option to reduce the burden of heart disease.
The researchers now hope to conduct a much larger clinical trial. Larger studies lasting several years will be needed to confirm whether mitoquinone can truly prevent heart failure and improve long-term health outcomes.
If future research supports these early findings, the supplement could become a simple and affordable way to help millions of people with diabetes protect their hearts before major problems begin.
For now, the study provides an encouraging glimpse into a possible new strategy for preventing heart disease. While more evidence is needed, it shows how a relatively simple supplement may one day play an important role in helping people with diabetes live longer and healthier lives.
If you care about heart health, please read studies about how eating eggs can help reduce heart disease risk, and herbal supplements could harm your heart rhythm.
For more health information, please see recent studies about how drinking milk affects risks of heart disease and cancer, and results showing strawberries could help prevent Alzheimer’s disease.
