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Screen time in the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) : a two-sample Mendelian randomization study

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Abstract

Objective:

This study aimed to investigate the potential causal relationship between screen time and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) using Mendelian randomization.

Methods:

Two-sample Mendelian randomization was conducted, utilizing genetic variants associated with different types of screen time as instrumental variables. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were used to assess the primary outcome, which was the risk of developing T2DM.

Results:

The analysis revealed a significant positive causal association between television viewing time and the risk of T2DM. Specifically, excessive television viewing time was found to increase the risk of developing T2DM (OR: 2.39, 95% CI: 1.90 to 3.00, P < 0.01). However, no significant causal relationship was observed between computer usage time and the risk of T2DM. Additionally, mobile phone use time showed a positive correlation with the risk of T2DM (OR: 1.31, 95% CI: 1.04 to 1.64, P = 0.02), albeit to a lesser extent than television viewing time.

Conclusion:

The findings of this study indicate a significant causal association between certain types of screen time, specifically television viewing and mobile phone use, and an increased risk of T2DM.

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Data availability

All the authors are very grateful for the data support provided by the IEU Open GWAS project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Medicine, Macau University of Science and Technology, Est. Seak Pai Van Praia Park, Rés-Do-Chão R, Coloane, Macao, 999078, China

    Zhengqi Qiu, Xueyuan Jia, Yufei Li & Ying Xiao

  2. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Health Science Center, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518060, China

    Yancheng Fu

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Contributions

Concept and design: Z.Q. and X.J. Acquisition, analysis, and interpretation of data: Z.Q, Y.F., Y.L. Drafting of the manuscript: Y.X. and X.J. Critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content: Z.Q., X.J. and Y.F. Statistical analysis: Z.Q. and X.J. Visualization, Z.Q., X.J. and Y.L. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Ying Xiao.

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Qiu, Z., Jia, X., Li, Y. et al. Screen time in the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) : a two-sample Mendelian randomization study. Endocrine (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12020-024-03723-5

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