| Title: | Association of domestic water hardness with incident diabetic retinopathy and the mediating role of GID8: A UK Biobank prospective cohort study |
| Journal: | Diabetes and Vascular Disease Research |
| Published: | 30 Jul 2026 |
| Pubmed: | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42531479/ |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.1177/14791641261474108 |
Publication 21281
WARNING: the interactive features of this website use CSS3, which your browser does not support. To use the full features of this website, please update your browser.
Abstract
PurposeTo investigate the longitudinal association between domestic water hardness and incident diabetic retinopathy (DR) in individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and identify circulating proteomic mediators.MethodsThis study analysed data from 13,194 participants with prevalent T2D. Domestic water hardness was determined according to residential postcodes. Weighted Cox proportional hazards models and mediation analyses were employed to evaluate associations between water hardness, proteins, and DR risk.ResultsDuring a median follow-up of 13.28 years, 1,505 cases of incident DR were documented. Compared with soft water (<60 mg/L), very hard water (>180 mg/L) was associated with a 49% higher risk of DR (HR, 1.49; 95% CI, 1.12-2.00). The plasma protein GID8 (Glucose-induced degradation protein 8) was identified as a mediator, explaining 6.2% (95% CI, 1.2%-25.5%) of the association.ConclusionThese findings provide some preliminary proteomic insights that domestic hard water may be a novel, modifiable environmental risk factor for DR, potentially mediated through GID8-related pathways. Future research should include mechanistic studies to confirm the biological pathways linking domestic water hardness to diabetic retinopathy.</p>
19 Keywords
- Aged
- Biological Specimen Banks
- Biomarkers
- Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2
- Diabetic Retinopathy
- Female
- Hardness
- Humans
- Incidence
- Male
- Middle Aged
- Prospective Studies
- Proteomics
- Risk Assessment
- Risk Factors
- Time Factors
- UK Biobank
- United Kingdom
- Water
11 Authors
- Zhiyi Gu
- Yujin Jiang
- Xinyu Zhang
- Yikeng Huang
- Jiajun Xu
- Xiaoqian Wu
- Xinyu Zhu
- Bo Li
- Jian Chang
- Shuzhi Zhao
- Zhi Zheng
1 Application
| Application ID | Title |
|---|---|
| 88982 | To explore the role and underlying mechanisms of circadian rhythm in the development and progression of diabetic retinopathy (DR) |
Enabling scientific discoveries that improve human health