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Mangoes Can’t Cure Diabetes
The latest in a string of research funded by Big Food
There’s a hilarious trope in the scientific world. Big agricultural companies have realized that people like to buy their products if they have a health halo. The best way to make your produce seem healthy — whether it be honey, blueberries, walnuts, or even wasabi — is to fund a few scientific studies. If the studies are negative, no problem! Just report them as if they were positive, because the chances that anyone will ever check are…very low.
The newest fun addition to this trope is the mango. Yes, I can finally say the words “Big Mango” unironically. There has been a swathe of media attention on the delicious tropical fruit recently, with claims that it can cure or perhaps prevent diabetes. In reality, these headlines are based on some very questionable science that was funded by the mango growing industry.
Hilarious stuff. Sometimes the truth really is better than fiction.
The Science
The new study that has everyone so worked up about mangoes was a small clinical trial. The authors randomized 48 overweight people to either drink frozen mango or sugar-sweetened Italian ice smoothies for a month, then compared the groups. The primary outcomes of the study were a wide range of inflammatory…
