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Posts Tagged ‘Diabetes’

The health problem of diabetes has been linked with a variety of conditions and high blood pressure is one of them. Many of the complications of this medical condition are associated with high blood pressure. In fact, the rise in blood pressure aggravates most of these problems and is one of the causes of diabetes. The blood pressure should not rise above 130/80 for the health to remain stable. A normal blood pressure has an influence on maintaining blood sugar levels. All these facts help us understand the problems that could occur if the level of blood pressure rises. However, what happens when high blood pressure is over treated? Yes, over-treatment of this condition also is not good for the patients. Let us find how.

Effects of Over-treating High Blood Pressure in Diabetes

The treatment of high blood is necessary to prevent any possible health risks however, overdoing it could be hazardous. If the blood pressure drops too low, patients could suffer from dizziness. The person might also start feeling weak. Such a condition is not at all considered good for the health. In few cases, the patient suffers from a condition of dry mouth. A balance has to be maintained and such a treatment disrupts that balance. Dr. Eve Kerr who is associated with the University of Michigan and Department of Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor Healthcare System expressed her views on this topic. According to her, there are patients who initially need to be treated with high blood pressure medications. However, later on such a treatment is not required. Putting such patients on medications associated with high blood pressure could pose health problems. The research conducted by Dr. Kerr confirmed that between 3-20% diabetic veterans were over-treated for high blood. This research was reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine. The percentage of patients being over-treated differed from one hospital to other.

There is another aspect of the problem of over-treatment of high blood pressure. According to the predefined or pre-set guidelines, there is not such limit being set on the lower level of blood pressure. It is makes the situation a bit confusing because doctors who prescribe high blood pressure treatment cannot determine whether a particular limit is low or not.

These studies conducted by doctors provide an insight into the treatment measures that are currently followed. Understanding prevalent treatment measures should provide an opportunity to make improvements in them. The patients suffering from diabetes should take the matter of low blood pressure seriously.

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.

As you may have read in many a health blog, people with diabetes have to take special care of their teeth and gums.

When you have diabetes you are at greater risk of cavities, gum disease and other tooth infections. Not only that, but such infections can cause blood sugar to rise, and it becomes a vicious cycle.

Here are some common problems that people with diabetes are prone to.

Diabetes – Plaque

Plaque is, of course, an issue for a lot of folks, not just people with diabetes. Plaque is caused by starch and sugar, and most of have more of those than what’s good for us! So diabetics are extremely prone to plaque.

Dry mouth

Some mornings, as a diabetic would tell you, your mouth becomes so dry you can hardly speak—a person with diabetes definitely knows how that feels. But it’s more than just problematic; it’ is dangerous to the health of our mouths. Saliva, gets rid of most of the bacteria that causes cavities and gum disease. When your mouth becomes dry, there is not enough saliva to carry out this process, So what happens here is that you become more prone to gum diseases and cavities. Due to the lack of saliva the soft tissue in the mouth becomes inflamed making eating and drinking a very unpleasant experience.

For people with diabetes and dry mouth a dentist would definitely recommend artificial saliva substitutes, you can usually encourage your own saliva to flow by chewing on a sugar-free candy. Drinking a good amount of water regularly would definitely help.

Diabetes – Fungal infections

Not only does a person with diabetes have less saliva than what is required, but the saliva is high in sugar content, so it is twice the trouble for a diabetic. This can cause a fungal infection called candiasis, generally known as thrush. It creates sore red or white spots in the mouth. Medicines can help in these cases.

As a diabetic, you cannot and must not neglect oral hygiene. Look after your teeth; make sure that you brush your teeth and floss at least twice a day. Examine your gums for signs of problems—and always visit your dentist at least twice a year when you suffer from diabetes.

While medical researchers have so far not been able to nail down exactly what causes diabetes, you’d do well to take note of certain factors from this diabetes blog post, that have been linked to the development of diabetes.

Causes of diabetes – Genetics

Genetics is a main factor. It has been known for ages that diabetes can be inherited. Nonetheless, the pattern of inheritance happens to be far from fully understood. Statistics indicate that people with diabetic family members are at a higher risk of acquiring diabetes than those without. In cases of families where diabetes is common the risk factor is about thirty percent higher.

One main cause of diabetes, especially type-2 diabetes being inherited is the diabetes gene. However, even you acquire diabetes genetically and even though it is beyond your control, that still doesn’t mean that you have to suffer badly because of it. There is no cure for diabetes mellitus in the full sense of the term, but it can be efficiently kept under control.

Causes of diabetes – Diet

Overeating, say medical scientists, is one of the main causes of diabetes.it is very important to maintain a healthy diet to control diabetes. Diabetes has been described by most medical scientists as a prosperity disease, for the most part caused by regular overeating. Not only is ingesting too much sugar and refined carbohydrates damaging, but proteins and fat, which are transformed into sugar, may also cause diabetes if taken in excess.

It is remarkable to note that diabetes is almost unheard of in countries where folks happen to be underprivileged and cannot afford to overindulge.

The prevalence of diabetes is directly linked with the eating of processed foods rich in refined carbohydrates, such as pudding, cake, bread and chocolate.

Causes of diabetes – Obesity

Obesity is a key contributor to diabetes. Research has shown that between sixty five and eighty percent of diabetics tend to be obese. In the United States alone, about eighty percent of type –2 non-insulin dependent diabetics are said to be obese.

The proper working of insulin in the body is hampered by excess fat.  The tissue cells in the body and the muscles as well become resistant to insulin due to the large amount of fatty tissue. Insulin allows the glucose in the blood to enter the cells by acting on the receptor sites on the surface of the cells.

Once people grow older and pass a certain age, they tend to put on weight, and the same time,  and many a time a lot of these people develop a mild form of diabetes.

Causes of diabetes – Lifestyle

Being active and living an active life is very important. Folks that lead less active lives and refrain from physical exercise are at a very high risk of getting diabetes. Work these days has become quite easy because of all the latest technology, physical activity is at a minimum. Physical activity and exercise help keep weight under contro. Consequently, the workload on the pancreas is reduced.

Talking about diabetes, this is how shocking the rise of obesity has become: according to the Surgeon General’s office, the number of obese or overweight adults in this country is around about fifty percent higher than it was just ten years ago. The latest studies have estimated that about a third of the children born in 2010 will develop Type 2 Diabetes, which was once called adult-onset diabetes and is for the most part driven by excessive weight. And possibly most troubling of all: over the last ten years the number of deaths directly related to obesity-inspired diseases has risen by a whopping thirty three percent.

Obesity is a big contributor to diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. Diabetes leads to a heightened risk of limb amputation, blindness, heart disease, and kidney problems. The close relationship between excessive weight and diabetes cannot be ignored. Which is why it’s so essential for those who have pre-diabetes or have Type 2 Diabetes to keep an eye on their body mass index?

Diabetes – What is BMI?

Body mass index also known as just BMI, what is it exactly?  It is a simply calculated number which tells you the percentage of your of body weight that comprises of fat. Although this number is not a hundred percent accurate, particularly when the calculation is based solely on height and weight, it’s a good educated guess. Surely good enough to use as a guide if you get on a weight loss program. Other factors that are normally taken into consideration are sex and age.

The most precise way to find out your body mass index is by working with your doctor. Not only can he give you some additional insight into the meaning of the number, he can recommend the best way you can go about losing weight, you can find more information regarding the same on a good diabetes blog.

Nevertheless, if you want to know where you stand on the BMI scale, it is quite easy to find a BMI calculator on the internet . The quickest way to finding a calculator is by doing a search for the term “BMI” or “body mass index” on a search engine such as Google.

Diabetes – What does your BMI tell you?

After you have found your BMI number, you will want to know what it means. As a rule of thumb, for adults a body mass index of less than 20 means that the person is underweight, and if the BMi happens to be more than 25 it is overweight, and over 30 is obese. For a more detailed idea of where you fall in the index, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute will give you a complete Body Mass Index Table for your convenience.

All said and done: if you happen to be overweight, you are at risk of getting diabetes. Diabetes symptoms are not easily detected, yet it can cause kidney failure, heart disease, a stroke and one might even have to amputate a limb. This is why, to keep diabetes at bay, it’s so essential to keep a close eye on your weight and particularly your body mass index.

Diabetes creeps up on a person bit by bit and then all suddenly, the pancreas and other body parts refuse to function properly. This post on our diabetes blog has been written to help you understand the diet end of controlling this illness.

There are millions and millions of people around the globe showing diabetes symptoms, and most of them are not even aware of it.
People with this illness cover a wide range of ages, right from infants going up the elderly. As they carry on with their lives as diabetics it begins to slowly consume them. In the end all it needs is a balance of diet, exercise and insulin. Balance is the key to a diabetic leading a good life.

The biggest challenge a diabetic faces is maintaining the proper diet. The diet for every diabetic needs to be balanced to that individual’s requirement. Many of the foods eaten are generally converted into a type of sugar called glucose in the process of digestion. The blood then carries glucose through the body. Insulin then turns glucose into quick energy or it is stored. In diabetics, the body either does not make an adequate amount of insulin or it cannot use the insulin properly. Thus excessive glucose builds in the bloodstream.

Food to avoid when you have diabetes

Food that helps when u have diabetes

Bitter Gourd (lowers the blood-sugar levels effectively)

Fenugreek

Cinnamon Solution (Boil cinnamon sticks and drink water)

Flaxseed

Fiber (apples, soybean, oatmeal etc)

Onions

Garlic

More suggestions to control diabetes

Keep an eye out for particular diabetic recipes to help you follow a healthy diet.

Eat similar quantities of food at the same time every day.

Include starchy foods such as dried beans to increase their intake of starch.

Consume lots of fruit and vegetables for soluble fiber.

Manage and keep your weight under control.

Control your carbohydrates.

Diabetes also known as diabetes mellitus is classified as a metabolism disorder. Diabetes occurs when the body produces no insulin, low insulin or when the cells are incapable or cannot accept insulin, this hormone is produced in sufficient quantity by the pancreas. The food consumed by the body is turned into glucose the primary fuel of the body, glucose enters the cells when insulin is present, however in the absence of insulin the cells are unable to accept glucose thus the excess sugar is passed through the system in the form of urine.

This disease leads to several future complications such as adult blindness, end-stage renal disease (ESRD), gangrene, amputations and in severe cases can lead to coma.

The types of Diabetes can be classified into the following three

Diabetes Type 1 – The patient produces no insulin at all.

Diabetes Type 2 – The patient doesn’t produce enough insulin, or is not working properly.

Gestational Diabetes – The patient develop diabetes just during her pregnancy.

Diabetes Types 1 and 2 are chronic medical conditions which means that they are persistent and perpetual.

Classification of Antidiabetic Drugs

Due to such risks patients must ensure to receive long-term and often lifelong treatments to maintain the stability in their blood sugar, thus reducing the risk of further complications.

Antidiabetic drugs can be classified into two categories:

Insulin injections

These injections are used to control the high blood sugar by providing the body with the amount of insulin which the body was naturally supposed to create, thus these injections only control blood sugar and does not cure it. These injections are required by people suffering from Type 1 diabetes or in people who have Type 2 when it cannot be controlled with oral medications alone. Ensure to follow your doctors prescriptions to the letter, do not alter or change your prescribed dose or change your insulin brand without consulting your doctor.

Oral anti diabetic drugs

This type of drug is mostly suitable for adult patients. There are mainly two types of oral anti diabetic drugs:

Sulphonylureas

This is one of the oldest type of drugs used to treat Type 2 diabetes, this drug stimulates the pancreas to release more insulin into the blood stream and thus increases insulin secretion. There are several “generations” of this classification of medicines. Second and third generations are more widely prescribed today.

First generation: Orinase, Tolinase and Diabines

Second generation: Glucotrol (glipizide), Glucotrol XL (extended-release glipizide), Micronase or Diabeta (glyburide)

Third generation: Amaryl (glimepiride)

Biguanides Metformin

Januvia (sitagliptin phosphate): The first of the DPP-4 inhibitors to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Januvia is an oral medication which is taken once a day, either alone with diet and exercise, or in combination with other oral diabetes medications.

Diabetes – Life Adaptations

However with the use of such drugs, it becomes important for the patient to undertake a few changes in his lifestyle, such as sticking to the dosing schedule and the diet prescribed by the doctor or dietitian. Avoid high-calorie and fatty food

• Conduct regular urine and blood tests to evaluate the progress of your conditions.

• Maintain personal hygiene to prevent complications such as skin infections.

• Quit smoking and alcohol.

• Eat the right amount at regular intervals. Do not delay mealtimes.

• Last but far from least,consistent exercise is critical to managing diabetes and avoiding complications.

A careful reading of previous posts on this medical blog would reveal that diabetes is a group of metabolic diseases distinguished by high blood sugar or glucose levels that result from failing in insulin secretion, or action, or maybe even both..

From time to time, since symptoms can also be common to other illnesses, the real illness may be unnoticed. Diabetes symptoms may differ, the list may go on and on but not all diabetics have them. There are even some cases that no symptoms may show on some patients.

Diabetes occurs when the body’s capability to act in response to insulin gets affected. The insulin is your body hormone that allows your blood sugar or glucose to enter body cells. When too much glucose enters the blood, this leads to the high amount of blood glucose that can cause glucose spillage in urine. This is the primary reason why one of the most classic diabetes symptoms, frequent urination, troubles the patient.

Because high glucose level is beyond normal, your body cells are starved of energy and as a result lead to the damage in your nerves, kidneys, eyes, blood vessels and your heart. The bigger amount of glucose appears when the sugar of your body drops too low. It then increases production of sugar. This process starts when the pancreas releases the hormone called glucagon. The stored glycogen will be converted back into the glucose by your liver and muscles.

How are diabetes symptoms diagnosed?

Diabetic diagnosis and Diabetes Treatment Methods may vary and is based on the period and range of the high blood sugar levels. Patients with type two diabetes are often diagnosed comparatively gradually as compared to people with type 1 diabetes, to which it may take only after weeks or some months. Symptoms may also develop quite slowly.

Some of the most specific and common early diabetes symptoms are

• Absence of menstrual periods
• Blurry vision
• Skin disease
• Weight loss or weight gain
• Peripheral neuropathy
• Urinary tract infection
• Malaise
• lethargy
• Poor skin healing
• Athlete’s foot
• Sexual problem
• Abnormal vaginal dryness
• Erectile dysfunction
• Untimely menopause
• Numbness of the hands

Other more extreme diabetes symptoms are

• Cessation of menstrual periods
• Headache
• Muscle aches, weakness and cramps
• Acne
• Excessive thirstiness
• Dehydration
• Weight loss even with an increased appetite
• Tiredness, fatigue, nausea, and vomiting
• Excessive urination
• Excessive hunger
• More bladder, skin and vaginal infections
• Serious blurry vision

Some of the other diabetes symptoms are listed below

• Bleeding Gums
• Confusion
• Depression
• Buzzing in the ear
• Feet numbness or tingling
• Skin itching
• Diarrhea

Complications linked to diabetes symptoms

• Heart diseases and
• Stroke
• Diabetic retinopathy
• Sciatica
• Kidney diseases

Some insulin-dependent diabetics and their doctors are turning to insulin pump therapy as a means to improve diabetes control. But as with all people with diabetes self-care is another tool an insulin pump is as effective as its use. The concept of a pump to deliver insulin slowly under the skin through a small self-inserted a plastic catheter. The progressive delivery of insulin designed to mimic the normal release of insulin in people without diabetes.

When food is eaten, this is the work of diabetes to determine the dose and schedule of the pump to deliver it. Although simple in theory, the insulin pump can be difficult in practice. Insulin pumps are expensive, costing thousands of dollars. In addition, annual operating costs of a pump may be $ 1,500 or more. Patients must have a prescription from your doctor, and approval of health insurance. In the era of rising medical costs, some insurance companies have begun to reduce the coverage of insulin pumps.

Insulin pumps are aggressively promoted to diabetics. Pump companies extol the virtues of their products, which are considerable. And doctors also are targets. But insulin pump therapy is not a part of medical school training and even some endocrine specialists get little to no formal education in their use. Knowing this, pump companies offer initial training to any diabetic starting an insulin pump.

One common practice I’ve seen is for a doctor to prescribe an insulin pump to a diabetic in very poor control with the expectation that the pump itself will turn things around. This is a gamble. Often the reasons for poor control are due to a lack of quality ongoing diabetes education, or even poor motivation by the diabetic to take charge of his or her condition.

Proper use of an insulin pump requires a good working knowledge of how insulin, food and exercise interact, plus good troubleshooting and problem solving skills. Learning how to use an insulin pump is like learning to drive a car. A short encounter with a pump trainer usually fails to provide the preparation needed to master a device, which I’ve likened to a Swiss army knife with dozens of attachments.

I adopted a phrase I heard which summarizes a disturbing practice that remains prevalent in the diabetes industry: “pump and dump.” This is when the person with diabetes receives minimal education and little ongoing training for a device that, in theory, could improve both quality and quantity of life.

The best defense against “pump and dump” is to know it exists. I’ve seen far too many diabetics get started on an insulin pump without the proper support and ongoing training, then struggle. Pumping insulin is best considered a lifelong learning experience.

Diabetics represent a kind of market. Diabetes companies want to make profits. Altruism is attractive to customers and physicians, but both need to be informed consumers. Insulin pumps are remarkable tools, but not a panacea.

Gastric bypass surgery has been known to improve glycemic control, often send people with type 2 diabetes into remission, but experts have long wondered exactly how it goes.

Now, a new study provides some clues.

Movement of amino acids associated with insulin resistance decreased significantly in those who have bypass surgery, researchers have discovered. They compared 10 obese people with diabetes who underwent surgery with 11 who have lost weight by dieting.

“Something happens after gastric bypass, there are so many food-induced weight loss,” said Dr. Blandine Lafer, associate professor of medicine at St. Luke’s Roosevelt Hospital Center and Columbia University, to New York City.

The study is published in the April 27 issue of Science Translational Medicine.

The surgery, which reduces the stomach to the size of a small pouch, also modifies the junction between the stomach and small intestine. It leads to a dramatic reduction in the level of circulating amino acids that have been linked with diabetes.

“The fact that gastric bypass results in the remission of diabetes in the majority of patients is not new,” said Laferrere. According to background information in the study, 50% to 80% of diabetes cases go into remission after the surgery.

What doctors have been trying to figure out, she said, is why the bypass surgery is so good at making the diabetes disappear. “The diabetes improves almost immediately, before a significant amount of weight loss occurs,” she said. “That points out it is something other than the weight loss.”

In the new study, the researchers evaluated biochemical compounds involved in metabolic reactions in the participants. Each group had lost about 20 pounds. The investigators found that the bypass patients had much lower levels of amino acids known as branched-chain amino acids, and the amino acids phenylalanine and tyrosine.

“Those changes in the amino acids could be implicated in the mechanism of diabetes remission after gastric bypass,” Laferrere said.

Experts know the amino acids are linked with insulin resistance partly due to animal studies, she said. “If you supplement the diet of rats with branched-chain amino acids, you can induce more insulin resistance,” she explained.

However, Laferrere said, the finding does not mean all obese people with diabetes should pick surgery over dieting. The surgery is highly invasive, she noted, and not everyone is a candidate.

While the findings are intriguing, she said, it’s too early to apply them to diabetes treatment. Eventually, she added, after experts understand more about how the surgery affects the amino acids, it may be possible to apply the findings to develop better diabetes treatments or a less invasive surgery.

The new study adds weight to other research finding a link between the decline in branched-chain amino acids and the decline in insulin resistance, said Dr. Thomas J. Wang, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and a coauthor of the perspective accompanying the study.

“It’s known that gastric bypass rapidly reverses insulin resistance, which is one of the principal biochemical abnormalities that precedes diabetes,” Wang said.

“This study really does help to confirm that hypothesis that branched-chain amino acids do go down more in people who have weight loss surgery,” he said. While it lends support to the idea that there is a link between the reduction in the amino acids and the decline in insulin resistance, it does not yet prove cause and effect, Wang added.

“It shows people who get weight loss surgery have a bigger drop in their branched-chain amino acids. What is not yet proven is whether that reduction in branched-chain amino acids is the reason their insulin resistance declines,” he pointed out.

Wang and his co-author, Dr. Robert Gerszten are co-inventors of patent applications relating to metabolite predictors of diabetes.

Gerszten, and Wang also pointed out that the number of obese people have type 2 diabetes were 171 million worldwide in 2000. By 2030, the number should be doubled. Therefore, they wrote a detailed understanding of the role of amino acids in the diabetes would be valuable.