Eating too much sugar doesn’t directly cause diabetes. However, there is a correlation (association) between being overweight or having obesity and type 2 diabetes. Over time, consuming too many foods and beverages, including those high in sugar, may lead to weight gain. Excessive weight gain can increase your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Correlation means there is an association between two variables. However, it doesn’t mean that a change in one variable will always lead to the other variable. Causation means there is a cause-and-effect relationship or that a change in one thing causes a change in another thing.
This article discusses sugar and its association with diabetes, symptoms of too much or too little sugar, and sugar intake in people with diabetes.
In type 1 or 2 diabetes, sugar isn’t a direct cause
Because diabetes is associated with high blood glucose (blood sugar) levels, it seems reasonable to assume that consuming too much sugar causes it. However, no quality literature cites sugar intake as a direct cause of type 1 or type 2 diabetes.
How can people get diabetes?
Type 1 diabetes is not associated with diet and lifestyle habits. Rather, genetics and environmental risk factors are thought to play a role.
Having a parent or sibling with type 1 diabetes means you have a higher risk for type 1 diabetes. In the United States, white people are more often diagnosed with type 1 diabetes than African American and Hispanic or Latino people.
Scientists have long been searching for a way to help cure or prevent the onset of type 1 diabetes. In November 2022, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a drug to delay the onset of type 1 diabetes. The new drug, called Tzield (teplizumab), is administered by intravenous (IV) infusion once daily for 14 consecutive days. It is indicated for use in people with stage 2 type 1 diabetes (dysglycemic—in which blood sugar levels go too low or too high—but presymptomatic) to help delay progression to stage 3 type 1 diabetes (dysglycemic and symptomatic).
Type 2 diabetes is a complex, multifactorial disease with many different causes and risk factors. Some risk factors are lifestyle-related, such as being physically inactive or being overweight.
Other risk factors for type 2 diabetes include:
- Having prediabetes (in which average blood sugar levels are high but not high enough to diagnose diabetes)
- Being 45 years of age or older
- Having an immediate family member (parent or sibling) with type 2 diabetes
- Having had gestational diabetes (diabetes that begins during pregnancy)
People of African American, Hispanic or Latino, American Indian, Alaska Native, Pacific Islander, or Asian American heritage are more often diagnosed with type 2 diabetes than white people in the United States.
Type 2 diabetes may be prevented or delayed by making positive lifestyle changes. These include following a healthy eating pattern, participating in regular physical activity, and losing weight if you’re overweight.
Verywell Health prefers to use inclusive terminology. But when citing health authorities or research, the terms for gender, or racial groups from those sources are used.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition in which the immune system damages the body’s ability to make insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps the body use blood glucose for fuel and lowers blood glucose levels. Type 1 diabetes often occurs in childhood or adolescence but can develop at any age.
Type 2 diabetes is a chronic medical condition that develops over time. With type 2 diabetes, there is often insulin resistance, meaning your body doesn’t use insulin properly—which often results in high blood glucose levels.
Over time, people with type 2 diabetes can also develop decreased insulin production and require insulin as part of their treatment plan. Type 2 diabetes is most commonly diagnosed in adults. However, more and more children and adolescents are being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
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