Zinc supplementation for the prevention of type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: a systematic review of randomized clinical trials

• Grant number: 13/26753-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: May 01, 2014
• End date: April 30, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Regina Paolucci El Dib
• Grantee: Matheus Senna Pereira Ogata
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina (FMB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The chronic hyperglycaemia of diabetes is associated with long-term damage, dysfunction, and failure of various organs, especially the eyes, kidneys, nerves, heart and blood vessels. The risk of developing type 2 diabetes increases with age, obesity, and lack of physical activity. Insulin resistance is a fundamental aspect of the aetiology of type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance has been shown to be associated with atherosclerosis, hypertriglyceridaemia, glucose intolerance, dyslipidaemia, hyperuricaemia, hypertension and polycystic ovary syndrome. The mineral zinc plays a key role in the synthesis and action of insulin, both physiologically and in diabetes mellitus. Zinc seems to stimulate insulin action and insulin receptor tyrosine kinase activity. This proposal aims to assess the effects of the zinc supplementation in the prevention of type 2 diabetes mellitus. The research project will be conducted at the Department of Anesthesiology and at the Systematic Review Unit of the FMB/UNESP - Botucatu-SP. It will be performed a systematic review according to the Cochrane Collaboration methodology aiming to map all RCTs identified in the electronic databases to evaluate the effectiveness of zinc supplementation for the prevention of type 2 diabetes mellitus. The analysis and data collection will be performed by two reviewers independently, who will select potential studies. The original review, attached, of this research was first published in 2007 in the Cochrane Metabolic and Endocrine Group Disorders Group of the journal Cochrane Database of Systematic Review, with an impact factor of 5.9. As the findings have been inconclusive because there was only a single clinical trial that met the inclusion criteria of the systematic review, and considering that the Cochrane Library review constantly updates its inconclusive reviews, we will conduct along with the Cochrane group the first update of this systematic review.