Neu5Gc (N-glycolylneuraminic acid) is a sugar molecule made naturally by most mammals and found mainly in red meat, especially beef and lamb, with smaller amounts in dairy. Humans lost the ability to make it after an ancient mutation in the CMAH gene, so when people absorb it from food the immune system can treat it as foreign and produce antibodies, a chronic inflammatory response called xenosialitis.
In preliminary findings presented at the 2026 European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) meeting, researchers led by Dr. Leopold Fezeu of Université Sorbonne Paris Nord analyzed 89,953 adults in France’s NutriNet-Santé study. Over a median 7.2 years of follow-up (966 new cases), people with the highest intake of meat-derived Neu5Gc had a 63% higher risk of type 2 diabetes than those with the lowest intake. The study is observational, so it shows an association rather than proof that Neu5Gc causes diabetes.
Image: Raw beef steak, by Jellaluna, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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