We take a look at some of the exciting diabetes research developments announced in October 2026, and what the findings could mean for people living with or affected by diabetes.
In this month's article:
- Could a childhood vaccine affect type 1 diabetes risk?
- Timing may be key when understanding dementia risk in type 2 diabetes
- New guidance for GLP-1s in pregnancy
Could a childhood vaccine affect type 1 diabetes risk?
A new study has found no evidence that vaccinating children against rotavirus could help prevent type 1 diabetes.
Scientists suspect that some viral infections might play a part in triggering type 1 diabetes in people who are genetically at risk. But pinning down exactly which viruses are involved, and whether preventing those infections could help prevent some cases of type 1, has proved tricky.
As we explored in our article on viruses and type 1 diabetes, there are several clues linking viral infections to type 1, but the evidence is mixed and many questions remain.
A new study from Norway focused on rotavirus, a common stomach bug that can cause diarrhoea and vomiting in young children. Some earlier research suggested that introducing the rotavirus vaccine was followed by fewer cases of type 1 diabetes in children, while other studies found no link.
To investigate further, researchers analysed health records from more than 740,000 children born in Norway between 2007 and 2019. They compared rates of type 1 diabetes before and after the rotavirus vaccine was introduced in 2014.
The researchers found no evidence that receiving the rotavirus vaccine changed a child’s risk of developing type 1 diabetes. If the vaccine helps prevent type 1 diabetes, you might expect the number of new cases to fall after it was introduced. But that wasn’t what the researchers found.
Importantly, these results don’t rule out the possibility that viral infections could play a role in triggering the condition. Instead, they suggest that preventing rotavirus infection through vaccination is unlikely to help prevent type 1 diabetes.
The causes of type 1 diabetes are like a giant jigsaw puzzle, with hundreds of genetic, environmental and immune system pieces all fitting together. Every study like this helps researchers rule ideas in or out, bringing us one step closer to fully understanding why type 1 diabetes develops and, ultimately, how we might prevent it.
Timing may be key when understanding dementia risk in type 2 diabetes
Researchers have discovered that routine health measures, like blood sugar levels, weight and blood pressure, may tell a different story about dementia risk in people with type 2 diabetes depending on when they're measured.
People living with type 2 diabetes have a higher risk of developing dementia than people without diabetes, but we don’t fully know why.
In a new study, researchers analysed health records from nearly 250,000 adults with type 2 diabetes in England, including more than 22,000 people who went on to develop dementia. They looked at eight routine health measures and explored how they were linked to dementia risk over time.
One of the study's most important findings was that timing mattered. Higher blood sugar levels were consistently linked to a greater risk of developing dementia over time. But for other measures, the relationship changed depending on how many years before a dementia diagnosis they were measured.
For example, higher bodyweight was linked to a higher dementia risk when it was measured more than 10 years before a dementia diagnosis. But when weight was measured closer to a diagnosis, the link weakened or even appeared to reverse.
The researchers suggest that some factors, such as higher blood sugar levels, may be linked to long-term dementia risk, while changes in weight and blood pressure closer to diagnosis could reflect changes that occur as dementia develops.
The study doesn't show that these health factors cause dementia. But it highlights that when a health measurement is taken can be just as important as the measurement itself when trying to understand dementia risk in people with type 2 diabetes.
By building a clearer picture of how dementia develops over time, studies like this could help researchers identify new opportunities to detect, delay or prevent dementia in people with type 2 diabetes in the future.
New guidance for GLP-1s in pregnancy
As more younger women with diabetes are prescribed GLP-1 medications, researchers have brought together the latest evidence on how these treatments can be used before, during and after pregnancy.
GLP-1 agonists are prescribed to lower blood sugar levels and support weight loss in people with type 2 diabetes. But there has been very little evidence to guide women and healthcare professionals on what to do if someone is planning a pregnancy, becomes pregnant while taking the medication, or wants to use it after giving birth.
So, with our support, researchers reviewed existing evidence on the safety and effectiveness of GLP-1s around pregnancy for women with diabetes. They analysed seven studies involving over 43,000 women. Most of the women included in the research were living with type 2 diabetes, but some had type 1 or gestational diabetes.
Overall, the researchers found no clear links between using GLP-1s and a higher risk of pregnancy complications, such as stillbirth or caesarean section.
The findings also suggest that if women stop taking GLP-1s in early pregnancy it doesn’t increase the risk of problems with their babies’ development, compared with not taking the drugs at all.
However, the researchers said quality of the available evidence was low, meaning more research is needed before firm conclusions can be drawn. The study also highlighted major gaps in knowledge. For example, we don’t know enough about GLP-1 use and:
- miscarriage risk;
- the second and third trimesters of pregnancy;
- safety while breastfeeding;
- their impact on health outcomes for mothers and babies;
- their use following birth.
The researchers used the available evidence to develop recommendations for healthcare professionals caring for women with diabetes who are considering pregnancy, are pregnant, or have recently given birth. They hope the guidance will support care today, while helping to shape the research needed to answer remaining questions.
