Author Archive

Type 1 Diabetes

When it comes to diabetes Type one is not as common as Type two diabetes and it mostly affects people at a young age. It is found mostly in people below the age of forty and even more in people under the age of fourteen. There happen to be cases where it has been detected in people that have passed the age of forty but these are very rare cases. As you might have read before on this medical blog, Diabetes is a serious issue; type one is the worst. It is related to the shortage of insulin. What happens here is that the pancreas fails to function properly and thereby the amount of insulin required in maintaining the correct level in the blood is not produced. A lot of people who have type one diabetes will show symptoms of hyperglycemia.

Diabetes – Hyperglycemia

Hyperglycemia is where your glucose in the blood is too high. Meaning your blood sugar is too high. The common symptoms of hyperglycemia or diabetes type one is frequent hunger, frequent urinating, and frequent thirst. You will also experience blurred vision, fatigue, weight loss, your healing power will be low which means that it will take a long time for a wound to heal, dry mouth, dry or itchy skin. Your immune system weakens and you will be susceptible infection.

The reason why you are always hungry is because your body can not use glucose as an energy source. It is also, why you tire out easily. Since the body cannot absorb sugar or glucose into the blood cells you will release it through frequent trips to the bathroom. Since you make many trips a day to the bathroom, your body realizes that it is losing excess water and that’s why you will become thirsty. When it comes to the symptoms, you may experience them all together or it may take some time for your body to go through the process. Most likely though it will be gradual.

It has been believed to have originated from infections such as the mumps, rubella, measles, influenza, polio and a few other viruses. That’s why it happens to be quite common in young children due to the fact that those epidemics affect children more often than adults. Diabetes is also genetic. You may simply have the disorder because a family member has it.

General treatment for people with Diabetes

  • Take the prescribed amount of insulin
  • Consume a healthy, balanced diet, paying special attention to the amount of carbohydrates in each meal and the diabetes meal plan
  • Monitor blood sugar levels several times a day
  • Get regular physical activity

Diabetes – Eating Right

Controlling diabetes is all about eating right. Luckily, whether you’re trying to reduce the risks or deal with an existing problem, you can enjoy your desired foods and enjoy your meals.

Diabetes – Improve your eating habits

Your dietary needs are the same as the next person, no out of the ordinary foods or complex diets are obligatory. But if your eating habits have been less than healthy, you may need to be taught some improved eating habits. The key to keeping your diabetes symptoms under control is eating with some restraint at the least, planning mealtimes and sticking to the timetable, eating an assortment of fruit, veggies, and whole grain.

Controlling diabetes by eating right comes down to the following

• Watching what you consume. Your diet makes a massive difference. You ought to eat mostly plant foods, avoid refined carbohydrates and sugary drinks, and choose healthy fats over unhealthy fats.
• Your mealtimes. Diet is part of it, but maintaining regulated mealtimes and snack times also affects your blood sugar levels and will assist in keeping them steady.
• How big is your meal. Portions matter. Even very healthy meals are eaten in extra large quantities you will put on weight, which is a big factor.

A diabetic does not need to eat out of the ordinary foods, but as an alternative merely emphasize on veggies, fruit, and whole grain. A correct diet is basically a healthy intake plan that is high in nutrients and low in fat, and quite moderate when it comes to calories. It is a healthy diet for everybody. A good diabetes blog can give you all the right dietary suggestions for the same.

There is some good news here and that is that you can enjoy your much loved foods as long as you plan correctly. The key when treating yourself to a lemon tart or your favorite dessert is to make sure that it is part of a healthy meal plan that is blended in with a good exercise regime.

Just because you happen to be diabetic, it does not mean that you have to eliminate sugar completely. But it is in a diabetic’s best interest to eat sweets or desserts such as cake etc on special occasions. You can still indulge in a tiny helping of dessert from time to time. The most important thing to bear in mind when you have diabetes is moderation.

Treating Diabetes

Diabetes treatment has come a long way over the last few years with new medication and devices summing up to a better life for diabetics.  Doctors have also become much more aggressive when it comes to dealing with diabetes. People with diabetes are getting diagnosed and treated earlier than they once did with better results to follow.

In this day and age there are so many options that professionals have developed, which is designed to treat diabetes, but insulin injections conventional and implantable insulin pumps are the most sought. It is wise to remember that diabetes is available in two common features of type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Most researchers believe type 1 diabetes is the simplest type to be treated in relation to type 2 diabetes.

Regular analysis of blood glucose was found to be the only thing that contributes greatly to know if you have diabetes or not, and if they do, what to do and how to go about situation. To be on the safe side, people are generally advised to constantly check their level of blood sugar to ensure that they operate in the security settings for healthy living.

In fact, if you’re interested in your routines, you can fight against diabetes on your own way, but at the same time carry out your own exercises that will benefit only in the long term. Treatment of type 1 diabetes, usually by means of insulin injected into the bloodstream to increase insulin levels in the body. Another way to treat this type is by doing lots of exercise, and most fundamental is to have a balanced diet when you take your meals.

On the other hand, type 2 diabetes, is usually treated by weight loss by encouraging most of the methods available, such as hitting the gym, or meditate. A patient may also be placed on a diabetic diet, where they are instructed to eat foods that will help them fight the disease. When someone is on a diabetic diet, then they should stay away from junk food. Junk food are usually high in fat, which when degraded by the body content release, which is so rich in sugar levels. This can also be solved by encouraging the patient to engage in routine exercise.

Some people tend to ask, how and what is the value of exercise, or by cutting the weight of them when it comes to treating diabetes? Doctors have found increasingly in the past that when you exercise or engage in a kind of weight loss operation, your body works so that his response and insulin sensitivity has been completed. Through this process, the body adapts to the late start in vain to control blood sugar in the system.

These are some basic methods for the treatment of diabetes, but there are others that can be used on when they fail. Often, some oral medication is administered if these methods do not bear fruit. If oral medications fail also, the final treatment is usually used for insulin therapy.

Diabetes – What to avoid eating

Diabetes – Avoid Fatty Food

The disproportionate use of fat in meals has been related to the development of diabetes. Recent studies at a reputed Health Science Center, established that consumption of an extra forty grams of fat per day amplifies the chances of developing diabetes by three times. A diet that is rich in fat, particularly one saturated with animal fat, seems to damage the effect of insulin. Researchers calculated the saturated fatty acids in the muscles cells of older non-diabetic men and the women that were about to have surgery and found that higher the occurrence of saturated fatty acids in the cells, the higher the insulin resistance. In contrast, higher tissue levels of polyunsaturated fats, predominantly fish oil, indicated better insulin activity and lower resistance. Fish oil differs from animal fats in that fish oil contains polyunsaturated fatty acids. One of the fatty acids called omega-3 is especially good for the heart—it lowers cholesterol and protects from atherosclerosis. As a matter of fact, the folks conducting the research also noted that the consumption of omega-3 fish oil successfully overcame their insulin resistance.

In another study, researchers considered and the eating habits and insulin activity among forty five non-diabetic women and men. One half of them were obese and the other half of normal weight. Higher fat consumption increased insulin resistance in both groups. This indicates, said the researchers that even normal individuals who lower their insulin efficiency tend to become vulnerable to diabetes.

Diabetes – Avoid Meat and Meat Products

“Eat Less Saturated Fat” happens to be one of the most vital nutrition guidelines to follow. A fast and easy way to do that is to refrain from eating meat and meat products. Meat is high both in saturated fat and cholesterol. Folks with diabetes have a bigger risk of heart disease in the early stages of life. The practically useless calories combined with saturated fats lead to lots of extra body weight and obesity, This puts a person with diabetes at a greater risk of heart disease.

When it comes to diabetes, meat is quite harmful. Meat increases the toxemic condition underlying the diabetic state and reduces glucose tolerance. The meat from animals increases the burden on the

Bright Lights at Night May Hoist Diabetes Risk

Revelation to artificial light among sunset and bedtime can reduce the quality of your sleep and may enlarge the risk of hypertension and diabetes, research has found.

The study included 116 healthy participants aged 18-30 who were exposed to light, either part or the dark for eight hours before bedtime for five consecutive days. Blood plasma was collected every 30 to 60 minutes to check the levels of voluntary melatonin, a hormone produced at night by the pineal gland in the brain.

Melatonin regulates the sleep-wake cycle and has been shown to regulate blood pressure and body temperature.

The study found that exposure to bright room light before bedtime shortened the duration of melatonin production by about 90 minutes, compared to exposure to dim light. In addition, exposure to bright room light during the usual hours of sleep suppressed melatonin by more than 50 percent.

The study is scheduled for publication in the March issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

“Given that chronic light suppression of melatonin has been hypothesized to increase relative risk for some types of cancer and that melatonin receptor genes have been linked to type 2 diabetes, our findings could have important health implications for shift workers who are exposed to indoor light at night over the course of many years,” study author Joshua Gooley, of Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, said in a news release from the Endocrine Society.

“Further research is needed both during construction melatonin suppression as a major risk factor for breast cancer and to determine the mechanisms by which melatonin regulates glucose metabolism” added Gooley.

Willingness to Pay More Attention to Diabetes

If you suffer from type 2 diabetes, there is amazing you should worry about: blood glucose monitoring, watching your diet, which includes daily exercise and normal visits to the doctor.

Be aware of your diabetes will now make a world of positive difference to the future health of your heart, feet, kidneys, brain and eyes. Why not take a New Year’s resolution to be more aware of your diabetes?

Diabetes is a complex disease, but putting a few well-defined measures in place can put you on track for making it part of your life rather than viewing it as an unwelcome stranger who, while easy to ignore, really won’t go away.  Here are some suggestions that can help you map out a plan for taking control of your diabetes:

Make a pact with yourself to check your glucose. If you’re having a hard time remembering to check, try some new tactics. For example, buy an inexpensive watch with an alarm, or use your cell phone alarm to remind you to test your blood sugar. You may also wish to carry a small notebook with you to use as a journal to record your blood sugar.

Make an entire year’s worth of doctor’s appointments now. Even if you are unsure of your schedule six months from now, having an appointment on the books will serve as a reminder to you, even if it has to be changed later. Schedule appointments with your primary caregiver, your endocrinologist, your ophthalmologist and your dentist.

Get your cholesterol and blood pressure checked. Since diabetes increases the risk for heart disease and stroke, it is important to make the time to have these checked at least once a year as part of an annual visit with your doctor.

Make losing weight a priority. An estimated 80 percent of people with Type 2 diabetes are overweight or obese. If you fit into this category, losing 5 to 7 percent of your body weight will help improve your diabetes and may even lessen your need for medication to control your disease. Start your weight loss program by calculating how many pounds represent 5 to 7 percent of your body weight, and then work with your physican to find the right combination of diet changes and activity in order to lose the weight in a predetermined amount of time.

Get moving. Exercise offers wonderful benefits to anyone with Type 2 diabetes. If you don’t already exercise, fit some sort of activity into your day. Strive for at least 30 minutes a day, but if that’s too much at once, break it down into three, 10-minute sessions. That can be a 10-minute walk around the block after each meal.

Order a copy of the “Diabetes Playbook” from Penn State’s Hershey Diabetes and Obesity Institute. It’s a great guide for managing your disease. Diabetic people who successfully manage their disease generally have a better quality of life and suffer fewer complications throughout their entire life. It’s a great way to start the New Year!

Linda Tobin is a partner in promoting health and wellness, Penn State Employees Wellness Program at the Pennsylvania State Office of Human Resources, who is also a trustee of people focused on diabetes.

Re-educated about Food

Children must “re-educated” on how to make fresh, healthy food choices and cook according Wanneroo resident Derrin Muirden. She hopes to help overcome the problems of Australia with childhood obesity and malnutrition, with his new company which is to eat?

Her first interest in nutrition began with his son, Kim (15) and Drew (9) after that Kim has been on a diet type and severe diabetes. Ms. Muirden taught them how to cook at once, with Kim now often full responsibility for preparing the evening meal for the family.

She said many parents at her sons’ schools were unsure what they should feed their children, were too busy to prepare a sit-down meal for the family or gave them free rein over afternoon snacks. The latter could fill children with empty calories, meaning that by evening they were uninterested in a healthy dinner.

“I have thought for a long time that there is a definite need for re-education on what kids should be eating,” Ms Muirden said. “I want to empower the children to make good food choices and be able to cook for themselves.”

She said the business developed over the past four months had been her “fourth career”. Her previous experiences in market research, clothes and early childhood product manufacturing and a partially completed home economics degree had proven useful in making her business idea a reality.

She attributed some interest in her program to the recent success of Junior Masterchef for demonstrating the benefits of teaching children to cook good food.

Her first students started this week, in age-bracketed classes using commercial kitchens at Kingsway Indoor Stadium and Beldon-Iluka Uniting Church.

Ms. Muirden said he hopes to get permission to teach in a renovated apartment in his grandmother’s house Wanneroo, allowing young charges to learn in the kitchen more like their own.

Judicious Eating Habits are Key to Fight Diabetes

Judicious eating habits are key to fight diabetes; experts said in a conference held to mark World Diabetes Day 2010, speakers noted that guarantee proper diet, mostly among high-risk patients, could help stem the high incidence of diabetes in the Sultanate.

Information from the International Diabetes confederacy show that this year, 10.7 per cent of 262,000 Bruneians were found to be suffering from diabetes. The disease is the third cause of death in the Sultanate.

Roziah Othman, Diabetic Education nurse (HSSB), said that complications from the disease could be reduced by controlling blood sugar. Roziah was one of three speakers at the symposium which was held at the Bumiputera Complex, Bangar Town.

Another speaker, Ripas hospital clinical dietitian Zakaria Kamis, said diet could help in managing diabetes and prevent the occurrence of the disease in high-risk patients. Meals should be eaten in small portions, but frequently, he said. “It is important to eat at fixed times. Eat three main meals and three light snacks. Make sure there are fruits and vegetables. However, control your rice intake as too much rice can lead to high blood sugar level,” he said.

He added that skipping breakfast would cause people to be hungry at the end of the day. This results in overindulgence and excess sugar intake. The dietician, however, added that it was not feasible to totally cut off sugar from the diet.

As sugar from simple carbohydrates causes the blood sugar level to rise and fall quickly, it is better to consume complex carbohydrates as it takes time for the sugar to be broken down. This provides enough sugar to last until the next meal.

Too much carbohydrate intake, though, can cause blood sugar level to spike. Zakaria also said that the amount of oil used in cooking is also a consideration. “Opt for boiled food and reduce use of oil,” he said. Alternatives such as olive oil, canola oil, corn oil, sesame oil or soya bean oil, he added.

In the meantime, carbonated drinks, syrup, three-in-one products and milk that are obtainable in the market are not suitable for people who suffer from diabetes, he said. He added that for milk, low fat or skimmed are better alternatives to full cream. Zakaria said with suitable modifications, even nasi katok can be a healthy meal. “Eat only one packet of nasi katok, add vegetables and throw away the chicken’s skin,” he said.

A Big Protects You Against Diabetes

For those seeking a healthy diet, dairy products, while fats and trans fats are not usually on the menu at least not yet. Scientists have fallen to a component of Trans fats are found mainly in milk fat may prevent type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular health protection. Although the investigation is far from conclusive and requires much more study, suggested that fat may play a more complex role in human health than previously thought.

The researchers found that adults with high levels of fatty acids (one of the most important parts of fat molecules) are called trans-palmitoleic acid in the blood was three times lower risk of developing diabetes, according to a study published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine. This naturally produced trans fats are found mainly in dairy component, and the flesh. These subjects also had less fat, better cholesterol and reduce triglycerides, which are all linked to improved cardiovascular health.

“It’s exciting because traditional fats have also been considered clogs arteries, but they seem to be both dangerous and protective,” said lead author and epidemiologist at Harvard Dariush Mozaffarian. “The fat of the world becomes more interesting and complex.”

Little is known about trans-palmitoleic acid. In a 1970 study, nutritionists found it comprised only 0.2 percent of all dairy fats. Mammals actually don’t produce it naturally. Bacteria found in cattle make the fatty acid during digestion, and it eventually finds its way to their milk.

Mozaffarian and his colleagues grew interested in the fatty acid after examining a small body of evidence linking dairy consumption with lower diabetes and cardiovascular disease risk factors. “Because trans-palmitoleic acid is fairly unique to dairy, we knew if we found it in subjects there’s a good chance it came from eating some dairy product,” he said.

Analyzing blood samples and lifestyles of more than 3,700 adults 65 years or older, Mozzaffarian found that even when adjusting for various demographic and lifestyle differences, subjects with high levels of trans-palmitoleic acid or reported eating whole-fat dairy appeared to be in better shape than those who didn’t. 739 people in the study had trans-palmitoleic acid at the highest protective level.  The acid was found in each person studied.

“This one of the strongest confirmations that there’s something in dairy fat that lowers risk of diabetes,” Mozzaffarian said.

That doesn’t mean you should put down the skim milk and reach for the half and half, however. Excess calories can lead to weight gain which, going unchecked is a contributing factor in diabetes, heart disease and a number of other health problems.  This is only one study that does not show trans-palmitoleic acid or whole-fat dairy directly caused these differences. However, it’s widely accepted that diets high in the saturated fats found in dairy products often lead to diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

“We certainly know that eating a lot of saturated fat is associated with some bad consequences,” said American Diabetes Association Senior Vice President of Medical Affairs and Community Information Dr. Sue Kirkman. “This study is interesting, but people shouldn’t conclude they should eat or drink high fat dairy products. It does, however, generate a great hypothesis for future study.”

Mozaffarian agreed. He hopes others will focus on trans-palmitoleic acid and its effects in the body. If the trans-palmitoleic acid has been found to protect against diabetes or cardiovascular disease, he imagined that maybe the producers can increase the concentration in dairy products or use as a supplement. “It’s exciting because it may be able to reduce the epidemic of diabetes worldwide,” said Mozaffarian. “But it’s really the new science, so we do not oversell. This could be a flash in a pan that proves correct. “

Fight Against Diabetes

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton called on governments to promote healthy diets and nutrition of mothers and their children’s programmers to eradicate diabetes, which so far has been 300 million people worldwide and is estimated to affect over 50 million people in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), the two decades.

Counsel for the fight against diabetes since 2004, Clinton spoke to 550 participants in two days, “Mena Diabetes Leadership Forum” held at Inter-Continental Hotel in the city of festivals. The event was officially opened as part of five days Dubai 6th International Conference on Medical Sciences at the UAE Health Minister Dr Hanif Hassan Ali Al Qassim afternoon Sunday.

Clinton said: “There is much support for child care of mothers and those provided by donors (in countries that have requested support on health issues like HIV / AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria). I say that Governments should include in these programs, diet and nutrition.”

He was answering a question raised by event organizer Novo Nordisk, president and chief executive officer Lars Rebien Sorensen, about recent studies conducted by the Danish pharmaceutical firm against diabetes. Studies showed that “huge” newborns are not necessarily healthy but have been grossly affected by their gestational pregnant diabetic mothers and in the long run, if not guided properly by good diet, nutrition and a healthy lifestyle, become victims of diabetes and its complications such as the non-communicable cardiovascular diseases and cancer, among others.

Clinton added: “My wife once said that every woman in any country has the responsibility gene. So, proper diet and nutrition is a concern of mothers.” On public and private partnerships wherein Sorensen pointed out those pharmaceutical firms may be seen as implementing initiatives for their own vested interests, Clinton said: “We should not be sensitive here. There is no government (which can address on its own harsh effects) of social behaviors.”

Clinton has been involved in the global fight against diabetes when her over the years he noticed that two of his chief of staff, and children with diabetes. Also, when his term of another of his friend, who seemed perfectly healthy and died from complications of diabetes. Clinton has suggested, among other things, the promotion of young people, food and beverage industries, and health professionals to address diabetes and related diseases through partnerships. He said: “so many wonderful things, amazing things happen in your area do not stop just because of diabetes.”