Learn about diabetes

Need for exercise in the case of Type 2 diabetes to alleviate effects on the heart

Diabetes Affected — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 18:14:41 +0000

Diabetes is supposed to have harmful affects on the heart, along with the harmful effects of an enhanced level of sugar on the internal organs of the body. There are an increasing number of diabetes affected people all over the world who are suffering from high levels of obesity / overweight individuals, there is a need to take measures that will benefit the cardiovascular system (the heart).
Experts are now recommending certain levels of exercise that will have a beneficial effect on the heart, and recommend that diabetes affected individuals do carry out an exercise regime in which they do atleast the minimum recommended (link to article):

Patients with type 2 diabetes should do at least two-and-a-half hours per week of moderate-intensity or one-and-a-half hours per week of vigorous-intensity aerobic exercises, plus some weight training, to reduce their cardiovascular risk, researchers suggest. According to an American Heart Association scientific statement, diet and exercise can prevent or slow the development of type 2 diabetes and produce clinically significant improvements in blood sugar control and cardiovascular risk factors in people with the condition.
Patients should exercise on at least three non-consecutive days each week to maximize benefits. Individual sessions should be at least 10 minutes each or longer.
Resistance training should be encouraged, and should be moderate to high-intensity 2-4 sets of 8-10 repetitions at a weight that can’t be lifted more than 8-10 times, with 1-2-minute rest periods between sets.

Unfortunately, with the prevalence of high starch diets, increasing convenience of mechanical locomotion (cars, escalators, elevators), and more busy life styles, people are moving away from even minimum levels of exercise. However, you cannot run away from diabetes, and need to ensure that you do whatever is necessary to fight it.

Diabetes research: Link between hypertension, diabetes, and heart attacks

Diabetes Affected — Sat, 02 May 2009 06:45:25 +0000

Diabetes is a major affliction that comes with many side effects, some of which are known, and others are those which researches are still finding out. The effect of higher sugar levels in the blood is linked to hypertension, and heart disease, and here is an article that tries to establish the link between them (link to article):

Researchers from A.O.U. in Cagliari Sardegna, Italy have found a link between increased carotid artery wall thickness (CAWT) - which can cause heart attack and stroke- and diabetes and hypertension.
During the study, the researchers looked at 186 patients with the help of multidetector row CT and sought to determine association between CAWT is associated with cardiovascular risk factors such as hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia and a history of smoking. The results showed that there is a statistically significant relationship between diabetes and hypertension.

What this means is that people who have higher levels of thickness of their carotid walls combined with diabetes need to go in for more frequent medical examinations, and get themselves checked periodically. They are at higher risk, and need to ensure that they are aware of that.

External article: Can weight loss surgery reduce or reverse diabetes

Diabetes Affected — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:07:52 +0000

Was searching for the answer to a question about whether having weight loss surgery can actually reduce the level of diabetes, or actually reverse the diabetes altogether. And I found this article (link to article)

Many people who are overweight or morbidly obese have metabolic syndrome (which is also called pre-diabetes) or have frank diabetes, which is also called adult-onset diabetes, type 2 diabetes, or non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (which, despite the name, may be treated with insulin). The hallmark of frank diabetes is high circulating levels of insulin and a resistance to that insulin, leading to higher-than-normal blood sugars.
Weight loss, by diet and exercise or by change in diet gastric bypass, very often improves insulin sensitivity and blood sugar control. Indeed, weight loss may eliminate the need for medical treatment of the condition. We in medicine usually still consider these folks diabetics, as they usually still have abnormal response to a high-sugar meal, but their blood sugar patterns are far better than before the weight loss and/or gastric bypass and their risk of diabetes complications is dramatically reduced.

People who are obese or over-weight are suspectible to high levels of diabetes, and it is important that they reduce their weight as soon as possible; further, their is a chance that their levels of blood sugar and diabetes affliction may reduce if their weight levels come down.

Diabetes research: Being able to diagnose diabetes through spit testing

Diabetes Affected — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:43:16 +0000

Diabetes is an affliction that affects a large number of persons nowadays. One big problem is about early detection, since a person who has diabetes which is not being detected and treated can suffer many problems. There is no control on the intake of sugar, or treatment with drugs to control the growth of sugar levels in the body, and consequently the problem of higher level of sugar in the body keeps on growing, in many cases, being detected only when the patient starts to suffer damage. However, current checking through the blood test is traumatic for many people, and for those who cannot stand a needle, it is very problematic. There is research ongoing about how to detect diabetes through other means, and this article talks about using the human spit for this purpose (link to article):

While searching for biomarkers that may indicate diabetes, doctors examined the saliva of 40 different patients. Through salivary analysis, they managed to devise a new ‘non-invasive’ method for detecting diabetes that foregoes the uncomfortable prick of a needle- patients need only to spit into a cup.
“Our goal was to characterize proteins in human saliva that may indicate prediabetes and type-2. Analysis of these proteins allowed us to develop a new method for screening, detecting and monitoring the diabetic state,” said Srinivasa R Nagalla, MD, and a member of the research team.

If this technique does become successful, it will be of big help in being able to detect diabetes much earlier than possible for a large number of patients.

Setting proper diet goals and eating desired foods

Diabetes Affected — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 19:17:49 +0000

For a diabetic, it is very important to keep a track of the food items a person consumes. Due to the inability of the body to process glucose properly, glucose levels in the blood stream can go up rapidly if the wrong sorts of food are eaten. It is recommended to prepare a proper food chart, and be sure about the food one is eating. It is somewhat uncomfortable for those people who have a sweet tooth, or like to eat junk food, but there is no getting around the problem; diabetes commands that a person learn to control their food intake as well as the type of food they are eating. It is equally important to make sure that a proper exercise regime is maintained, and weight levels are controlled, since obesity tends to decrease the metabolic count as well as reduce the glucose processing. Here is an article that presents details and is well worth reading (link to article):

Marriages are often used as excuses to laze around, skip exercise routines, party and enjoy. While most of us are lucky enough to get away with it, for a diabetic, diet and exercise go hand in hand. If you are one, make sure you prepare a ‘to-do’ list and follow it. Remember that you must have a diet that has a good balance of nutrition and taste.
About 15 to 20 per cent of calorie intake should come from protein.
Roughly 15 to 20 per cent of calorie intake should also come from fat.
About 60 to 70 per cent of your calorie intake should be in the form of carbohydrates. Include more of complex carbohydrates than simple ones as they breakdown more slowly to release glucose.
Decrease fat in the diet. Roast, bake or broil instead of frying. Trim the fat off meat and the skin off poultry, and avoid adding fat while cooking.
Increase fibre in your meals — including 40 gms of dietary fibre daily is beneficial.
Reduce sugar. Avoid adding sugar to beverages like tea, coffees, cereals etc.

There are many more tips in the article, and offer a lot of good suggestions that help diabetics keep their blood sugar levels down, and reduce the onset of other complications that come with diabetes. These are tips that are worth observing.

Sleep and diabetes - getting not too much more, not too much less

Diabetes Affected — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 19:02:23 +0000

There are a number of factors that are risk factors for getting diabetes (specially the Type 2 variety). These include factors such as the diet, hereditary factors, the amount of exercise that a person gets, and a few others, but very few people would have expected that sleep would be one of the factors. A study has found that too much or too little sleep can affect whether a person developes Type 2 diabetes, or impaired glucose tolerance (link to article):

The risk is 2½ times higher for people who sleep less than 7 hours or more than 8 hours a night, according to the study published in journal Sleep Medicine. To reach the conclusion, researchers analysed the life habits of 276 subjects over a 6-year period. They determined that over the timespan, approximately 20 percent of those with long and short sleep duration developed type 2 diabetes or impaired glucose tolerance versus only 7 percent among subjects who were average duration sleepers.
The researchers also point out that diabetes is not the only risk associated with sleep duration. A growing number of studies have shed light on a similar relationship between sleep and obesity, cardiovascular disease, and overall mortality. The authors observe that among adults, between 7 and 8 hours of nighttime sleep appears to be the optimum duration to protect against common diseases and premature death.

Even though people know that getting atleast 7-8 hours of sleep is optimum, more and more people are getting much lower levels of sleep, not realizing that this fast pace of life is affecting their health.

Improving the diet for diabetics - learning about the Glycemic Index

Diabetes Affected — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 17:38:03 +0000

Diabetics have always been under constant worry about what foods they can eat, and which are the food items that help keep their sugar levels under control, or more worrisome, increase the sugar levels. It is very important to ensure that consumption of food items that could increase the sugar level be avoided, or controlled. A measure used by diabetics for their diet is called the Glycemic index.
Def: A low GI food will release glucose more slowly and steadily. A high GI food causes a more rapid rise in blood glucose levels and is suitable for energy recovery after endurance exercise or for a person with diabetes experiencing hypoglycemia. GI is a measure of the effects of carbohydrates on blood glucose levels. Carbohydrates that break down rapidly during digestion releasing glucose rapidly into the bloodstream have a high GI; carbohydrates that break down slowly, releasing glucose gradually into the bloodstream, have a low GI. For most people, foods with a low GI have significant health benefits.
A study was evaluating the foods that are best for people with diabetes, and it was a bit of surprise to find that when people ate foods such as beans and nuts, their diabetes was under better control than when they ate a low GI diet such as the whole-grain diet (refer article):

People with Type-2 diabetes on a high-fiber diet kept their blood sugar under better control when they ate foods like beans and nuts instead of the recommended whole-grain diet, researchers have found.
Beans and nuts are among foods that only modestly increase blood glucose levels; scientists describe these foods as having a low glycemic index. The new study, which lasted six months, is one of the largest and longest to assess the impact of foods with a low-glycemic index, experts said.

For a diabetic, it is extremely important to know which are the food stuffs that one should eat, and which are the food stuffs that cause harm. Determining the Glycemic index of foods is an important part of such an effort.

Article: Gestational diabetes increase obesity risk in children

Diabetes Affected — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 08:22:37 +0000

In a study that deals with the impact of gestational diabetes of the mother on children (the effect of the version of diabetes that develops during pregnancy), this article explains that children who are born to mothers who developed gestational diabetes when they were pregnant, are more likely to become overweight or peers (link to article):

Researchers from the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon, and colleagues studied nearly 10,000 mother-child pairs enrolled in Kaiser Permanente plans in Hawaii and in the Pacific Northwest during the period from 1995 to 2000. Women with pre-existing diabetes were excluded. A follow-up with the children 5-7 years later revealed a significant association between their weight and their mothers’ blood glucose levels when tested during pregnancy.

Specifically, a child was 28 per cent more likely to be overweight or obese when the glucose level of the mother during pregnancy was in the high range rather than the lowest. The pattern remained significant after factoring in maternal weight gain, maternal age, number of pregnancies, ethnicity and birth weight.

Th study points out another reason why checking for and treating gestational diabetes is important, not only for the health of the mother, but also for the future health of the child.

Gestational Diabetes - Affects pregnant women

Diabetes Affected — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 17:11:14 +0000

Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that starts during pregnancy. If you have diabetes, your body isn’t able to use the sugar (glucose) in your blood as well as it should, so the level of sugar in your blood becomes higher than normal. It is temporary in nature and it disappears after pregnancy but there is 70% of good chance of it recurring.

Causes for developing Gestational diabetes:

1. Family history.
2. High blood sugar in previous pregnancy
3. Obesity in females.
4. Miscarriage
5. Previous delivery of large baby(greater than 9 pounds).

What is the effect of gestational diabetes on the Child :

1. Obesity
2. Jaundice
3. Low blood sugar level.
4. Respiratory problem
5. Shoulder problems

How can you do the Diagnosis of Gestational Diabetes ?

1. Diagnosed between 24th and 28th week of pregnancy.
2. Weak and heavy
3. The mother’s increased blood sugar levels are transferred to baby. This, in turn, causes the pancreas, which start working within 11 weeks of conception, to produce extra insulin to get rid of this sugar. Insulin is a growth hormone and as the baby starts getting more energy than it needs, it gets stored as fat which leads to weight gain. This may require delivery by caesarean.

Gestational diabetes can affect your pregnancy and your baby. However, you can minimize the risks by making healthy lifestyle choices.

1. Control your blood sugar levels.
2. Eat a healthy diet : Include more fruits in your diet and cut down your intake of pasteries, cakes, chocolates.
3. Keep doing moderate exercises.
4. Keep a track of your overall weight.

Link between diabetes and obesity

Diabetes Affected — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 17:04:49 +0000

In this case, we are mostly talking about the Type 2 diabetes, where the body has enough glucose for the needs of the cells, but the action of transporting the glucose inside the cells through a special protein called IRS (insulin receptor substrate) is failing. As a result, the cells are not able to get glucose inside them, and becomes starved of glucose while the extra glucose moves around in the blood stream and affects multiple organs. How is this related to obesity, you may ask ? Well, the preamble was that recent statistics show that 80% of those developing Type 2 diabetes in the recent past are obese, and the statistical link between being obese and developing Type 2 diabetes is pretty well established right now.
The medical link is still in the process of being well established, but medical experts are not going to wait for the whole science to be well established before they act; the hope of reversing an increased level of diabetes in society is through a much enhanced exercise program along with healthier food that promotes weight reduction. As in the case of a famous US politician who reduced something like 50 pounds in a short time and found that his diabetes condition had been vastly reduced, there are other evidence about how weight reduction (obesity reduction) surgey has had a beneficial effect on individual levels of diabetes.
Some of the conclusions for health promotion moves on the following key points:
# All–embracing strategies focusing on prevention and education at every level must be designed and communicated so that everybody understands the need.
# Healthy dietary patterns need to be encouraged at an early age, given the increasing onset of diabetes at a much earlier stage.
# Physical activity should form a central part of both childhood and adult lifestyles.
These recommendations are based on the following understanding: Without the intervention of a healthy diet and appropriate exercise, obesity has a very high chance of developing into diabetes over a relatively short period of time. Education and awareness is the key to solving the diabetes problem worldwide and at all ages, but tackling obesity when it is still at an early stage is essential in preventing the spread of the disease.