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Article Archives
November 2009
Q: How do I lower my blood sugar when it goes over 200 mg/dl? I have type 2 diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Nov 21, 2009
Bridgewater, NJ, November 19, 2009 - Sanofi-aventis U.S. announced today that GoMealsTM, a new iPhone application (app) designed to help people living with diabetes make healthy food choices, is now available for download at the iTunes App store. GoMealsTM is a food tracking tool which allows users to search thousands of foods and dishes from popular restaurants and grocery stores to easily see the nutritional content of meals and snacks.
0 comments - Posted Nov 20, 2009
PRINCETON, N.J., Nov. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly one-third of doctors surveyed said they did not have enough time and did not receive sufficient reimbursement to provide comprehensive care to their patients with diabetes, according to the results of a study of endocrinologists and primary care doctors published in American Health & Drug Benefits.
0 comments - Posted Nov 20, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. Nov. 16, 2009 - In combination with statins, adding a medication that raises high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol was more effective in reversing artery wall plaque buildup and in reducing heart disease risk than adding a drug that lowers low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, researchers reported today at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2009.
1 comment - Posted Nov 20, 2009
Whew! We received a landslide of comments recently when we published an article called Demand Health Care Reform Now! Some people complained that politics should stay out of our publication. Unfortunately, healthcare is a political issue, and we at Diabetes Health are interested in healthcare. We believe that healthcare should not be tied to employment and should be available to all, regardless of how healthy or wealthy they are. As always, though, we encourage dialog and welcome all points of view. Please keep telling us what you think.
7 comments - Posted Nov 19, 2009
An ad in the November 15, 2009, edition of Parade magazine may be the opening salvo in a campaign to push adjustable gastric bands as a weight loss aid to help overweight type 2s dramatically improve their symptoms or even go into remission.
2 comments - Posted Nov 18, 2009
The body's immune system is supposed to "tolerate" itself and distinguish "self" from "non-self." Autoimmune diseases such as type 1 diabetes result from the breakdown of this system, causing immune cells to attack and destroy insulin-producing beta cells or "self." In the November issue of Nature Immunology, Brian Fife, PhD and collaborators including senior author Jeffrey Bluestone, PhD share how they have uncovered a basic process that helps control immune cell activation and tolerance.
0 comments - Posted Nov 17, 2009
The Food and Drug Administration has given ARKRAY, Inc., a 510(k)* clearance to begin marketing its new GLUCOCARD® VitalTM blood glucose monitoring system in the United States.
1 comment - Posted Nov 17, 2009
The Genetic Information Non-discrimination Act of 2008 (GINA) was signed into law by former President George W. Bush on May 21, 2008, and is set to become effective Nov. 21, 2009. The law covers all employers with 15 or more employees. It prohibits employers from considering a person's genetic background in promotions, hiring, or firing. It also prohibits health insurers from using genetic information to deny coverage.
0 comments - Posted Nov 16, 2009
How careful should healthcare workers and patients be in describing a total remission of diabetes as a "cure?" That's a question that has taken on increasing urgency in the wake of reports about dramatic reversals of type 2 symptoms after gastric bypass surgery and the cessation of symptoms in people with type 1 diabetes after pancreatic islet replacement. To answer it, a group of endocrinologists met earlier this year to come up with descriptions and definitions that accurately describe what happens when people with diabetes experience a reversal of symptoms.
2 comments - Posted Nov 14, 2009
Do you ever stand in the fruit and vegetable section of your food store and wonder if it's really worth it to buy organic produce? Or do you wonder which conventionally grown items you can buy to save money and which items you should absolutely buy organic? I sure do. And I always resent standing there at the market, having to choose between a piece of fruit that has been exposed to chemicals and one that hasn't. Who should have to make a choice like that? Especially if you are taking that food home to your children. No one wants to eat poison.
2 comments - Posted Nov 13, 2009
"Spanish for Diabetes Educators" is a January, 2010 course arranged through Language Link, the U.S. Office for the Spanish Language Institute and the Multi-Cities chapter of the AADE (McAADE) in California.The course consists of a week of Spanish study (five days of classes) concentrated on your professional specialty. You will have 30 contact classroom hours, as well as opportunities outside the classroom for professional use of your Spanish. This course will qualify for continuing education units.
0 comments - Posted Nov 13, 2009
WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As the nation marks American Diabetes Month, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius released a new report today, Preventing and Treating Diabetes: Health Insurance Reform and Diabetes in America. The report comes one day after Sebelius toured the East Manatee Family Healthcare Center in Bradenton, Fla. At the center, Sebelius met with patients and Floridians who care for people with diabetes.
2 comments - Posted Nov 12, 2009
World Diabetes Day is a global awareness campaign that's celebrated every year on November 14. The goal is to encourage action to further the prevention, treatment, and care of diabetes, as well as to support the United Nations Resolution on Diabetes. Landmarks and monuments across the world are lit in blue to create a united voice for diabetes awareness, and diabetes events are held around the globe. As of Monday evening, November 9, the World Diabetes Day website reports that 366 registered diabetes events are scheduled for November 14th, in countries ranging from Saudi Arabia to Argentina to Morocco. In addition, 623 monuments are being lit in blue around the globe. More are sure to be added to the list as the day draws closer and closer.
1 comment - Posted Nov 12, 2009
Princeton, NJ - November 10, 2009 -- Diabetic foot ulcers are the primary cause of hospital admissions for diabetics. Foot ulcers that heal improperly are at risk for infection, which can lead to amputation. According to the American Diabetes Association, one in four patients with diabetic foot ulcers will eventually require lower-limb amputation. Now science has found a way of mobilizing stem cells within the body to treat this health issue, which affects more than three million Americans annually.
0 comments - Posted Nov 11, 2009
When I was a child, my mother always said, "Think before you speak." Have you heard of this before? If not, please digest my words. If you have heard of this simple yet beneficial policy, please reconsider its merit and then implement it into your practice.
31 comments - Posted Nov 7, 2009
The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) and the College of Endocrinology (ACE) released online a one-page resource for physicians and healthcare providers for the management of glycemic control in type 2 diabetes.
2 comments - Posted Nov 7, 2009
MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Employers are signing up for a first-of-its-kind health plan by UnitedHealthcare designed to help control the escalating costs of insuring diabetic and pre-diabetic employees and their families while improving their health.
3 comments - Posted Nov 7, 2009
I recently ran into Theresa Garnero at the California AADE annual meeting and discovered that Diabetes Health had not yet reviewed her book, Your First Year with Diabetes: What To Do, Month By Month. We regret the oversight because it's a great resource for anyone dealing with the shock of a diabetes diagnosis. And Garnero is the perfect author for a book like this. She's an award-winning certified diabetes educator (CDE) and advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) with board certification in advanced diabetes management (BC-ADM), and she earned an Master of Science in Nursing (MSN). She is also a former national educator of the year, a cartoonist, and the 2008 global recipient of Inspired by Diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Nov 6, 2009
Fingertip blood-oxygen monitors, called pulse oximeters, measure oxygen in the blood using light and color. The noninvasive device, which clips onto a fingertip or earlobe, typically has a pair of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) facing a sensor. Light of a certain wavelength (a certain color) travels through a translucent part of the body like the fingertip or an earlobe, and is picked up by the sensor. The amount of oxygen in the blood (actually, oxygenated hemoglobin) affects how much light from each diode finally makes it through the finger and reaches the sensor. The result is an effective measurement of the amount of oxygen in the blood.
6 comments - Posted Nov 5, 2009
If you bought Vytorin® and/or Zetia® to lower your cholesterol between November 1, 2002, and September 17, 2009, you may be entitled to some money. A lawsuit against Merck & Co., Inc., Schering-Plough Corporation, Merck/Schering-Plough Pharmaceuticals, and other defendants has reached a proposed settlement in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. The lawsuit, according to vytorinzetiasettlement.com (the authorized website for the settlement), claims that Vytorin and Zetia "were marketed as being more effective than other anti-cholesterol drugs and were sold at higher prices, when they were no more effective than less expensive anti-cholesterol drugs". The defendants, according to the website, "deny any wrongdoing and are settling this lawsuit to avoid the costs and expenses of further litigation."
0 comments - Posted Nov 5, 2009
Congress is getting a little bit closer to making the changes to the health care system we've been dreaming about for a very long time. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) says these changes could provide a real benefit to people with diabetes. Draft health care reform bills have now passed through the committee process in both the House and the Senate.
24 comments - Posted Nov 4, 2009
Professor Peter Schwartz, MD, is a very busy man in the European diabetes community. He's a professor of medicine, a scientist, and a medical doctor in the Division of Prevention and Care of Diabetes, Department of Medicine, University of Dresden. It's a mystery how he finds enough hours in the day to do what he does. Diabetes Health recently interviewed him via email since he lives and works in Dresden, Germany.
0 comments - Posted Nov 3, 2009
The California Association of American Diabetes Educators held its second annual meeting October 22 through 24, 2009, in Monterey, California, and Diabetes Health was there. The clinical and educational program, put together by Debra Norman and Kim Higgins, was called "Tidal Wave of Diabetes." The invited speakers shared innovation, research, and new techniques with the attendees.
1 comment - Posted Nov 3, 2009
October 2009
Novocell is the Recipient of a Disease Team Award for $20 Million from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine to Develop a Stem Cell Therapy for the Treatment of Diabetes
San Diego, CA (October 28, 2009) - Novocell, Inc., a preclinical stage diabetes company, today announced that it will receive a Disease Team award totaling $20 million from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). The Disease Team includes a group of scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), led by Dr. Jeff Bluestone, which is contracted to receive $2.8 million. The funding will advance Novocell's development of a first in kind cellular therapy for the treatment of diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Oct 31, 2009
Dear Diabetes Health, Hello! I am 60 years old and have had type one for about 24 years. It has been quite some time since I had a relationship, and now I have one coming at me. The problem is, I am very dry. The commercially sold products don't seem to help, and Intercourse isn't comfortable. What do you recommend that I try? And what about a libido enhancer? I need this relationship to work because living alone is tough, and my partner likes his intimacy. Please!!!
0 comments - Posted Oct 31, 2009
Taking your child to the pediatrician for annual vaccinations is bad enough, but if your child requires daily injections, fingersticks, and infusion set changes, it can be traumatic over and over again. Thankfully, help is here! When a pediatrician by the name of Amy Baxter, MD, realized that kids were being told to "just deal with it" when it came to shots, she thought there had to be another way and came up with a nifty FDA-compliant device called a Buzzy.
0 comments - Posted Oct 29, 2009
October 27, 2009 - Huntsville AL-Qualitest Pharmaceuticals today issued a voluntary nationwide recall of all Accusure® Insulin Syringes. The distributed syringes are of the following descriptions and NDC numbers: 28G 1/2cc, NDC 0603-6995-21;28G 1cc, NDC 0603-6996-21; 29G 1/2cc NDC 0603-6997-21, 29G 1cc, NDC 0603-6998-21, 30G 1/2cc, NDC 0603-999-21, 30G 1cc, NDC 0603-7000-21, 31G 1/2cc, NDC 0603-7001-21; and 31G 1cc, NDC 0603-7002-21. All Accusure® Insulin Syringes regardless of lot number are subject to this recall. These syringes were distributed between January 2002 and October 2009 to wholesale and retail pharmacies nationwide (including Puerto Rico). The syringes in these lots may have needles which detach from the syringe.
0 comments - Posted Oct 29, 2009
LEXINGTON, Mass., October 27, 2009 - GI Dynamics, a leader in non-surgical treatments for type 2 diabetes and obesity, today announced data which support the safety and efficacy of the EndoBarrierTM Gastrointestinal Liner for pre-surgical weight loss treatment, along with a positive effect on glucose homeostasis in morbidly obese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. According to the study, mean excess weight loss (EWL) achieved after 12 weeks post implantation was 19.0 % for EndoBarrier patients versus 6.9 % for control patients (p<0.002). The results of this European weight loss study were published today in the advance online publication of Annals of Surgery.
2 comments - Posted Oct 29, 2009
While the relationship between Alzheimer's and diabetes is far from clear, there does seem to be an interesting connection. And that connection just became a little more complicated according to a French study published in the October 27th issue of the journal Neurology.
0 comments - Posted Oct 29, 2009
Montreal, Canada - 20 October 2009 - This October marks the one-year anniversary of the international launch of the ground-breaking diabetes Conversation MapTM education tools. Created by Healthy Interactions, a global leader in health education, in collaboration with the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), Eli Lilly and Company and other leading diabetes experts, the unique Conversation MapTM education tools have been implemented in 68 countries, excluding the United States, in 31 different languages in the last 365 days. To complete the global launch, redesigned diabetes Conversation MapTM education tools will be unveiled throughout Canada in January 2010, along with a new Map designed for parents and children to learn together. New tools will also be introduced to several Sub-Saharan African countries by early next year.
0 comments - Posted Oct 29, 2009
The statistics are chilling. Children born today have a one-in-three chance of developing type 2 diabetes. For Latinos, however, that risk is one-in-two.
2 comments - Posted Oct 27, 2009
A South African university pharmacologist has found that simultaneous consumption of metformin and grapefruit juice raises lactic acid to dangerous levels in rats (and conceivably in people) with type 2 diabetes. Too much acid in the blood can cause low pH levels that interfere with the body's metabolic functions. Conceivably, says Dr. Peter Owira, a pharmacologist at the University of KawZulu-Natal, such low levels could be fatal.
3 comments - Posted Oct 26, 2009
While Googling recently, I found a link to Soul-Food-Advisor, a website devoted to "African American cuisine and soul food, mostly known as Southern or comfort food." It sounded, frankly, delicious. But as someone with pre-diabetes, I am trying to eat fewer carbs, avoid anything fried, and turn the other cheek when I see macaroni and cheese-my favorite comfort food since I was a little kid. So instead of looking at Soul Food Advisor, I turned my attention to the American Diabetes Association (ADA) MyFoodAdvisor online tool.
2 comments - Posted Oct 24, 2009
A recent and contentious meeting of diabetes experts at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes in Vienna, Austria, has continued the intense international debate over whether bariatric surgery should become a treatment for type 2 diabetes or continue to be reserved only for the extremely obese.
13 comments - Posted Oct 24, 2009
The International Diabetes Federation (IDF), established in 1950, is an umbrella organization that includes over 200 national diabetes associations in over 160 countries. It is currently holding its World Diabetes Conference, a biennial event, in Montreal, as well as preparing once again to sponsor World Diabetes Day on November 14. "Diabetes education and prevention" is the theme of the World Diabetes Day campaign for the next five years.
1 comment - Posted Oct 23, 2009
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A number of traditional Chinese herbs may help control blood sugar levels in people at high risk of diabetes, a new research review suggests.
0 comments - Posted Oct 22, 2009
A study of healthcare claims by 8.75 million health plan members and 632,000 Medicare patients has shown that healthcare costs for the serious consequences of diabetes are significantly lower for people who have been referred to diabetes educators. The savings accrued not at the level of primary or preventive outpatient services, but in the realm of acute inpatient services. In the commercial group, for example, insurees with diabetes education actually had higher outpatient claims than those who had not received education. Their claims for acute inpatient services, however, were considerably lower, indicating that diabetes education had allowed them to avoid some of the disease's harsher outcomes.
1 comment - Posted Oct 22, 2009
Eurotech, an 84-year-old technology company, recently introduced its EverywareTM Medical Gateway, a remote monitoring device that it hopes will bolster the already notable effectiveness that home care diabetes monitoring has had in reducing hospital admissions. Along with several partners, including IBM and Roche, Eurotech demonstrated the device at the October Continua Health Alliance Fall Summit and Plugfest held in Boston.
1 comment - Posted Oct 22, 2009
Fort Worth, Texas - Trey Weir, founder of Trey Weir Media, LLC, announces the launch of Type2Friendly, a digital restaurant guide for Type 2 Diabetics. Weir, a former professional arena football player and veteran mobile and Internet technology entrepreneur, was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes in 2008. After his diagnosis, he struggled to find information on restaurants that served "Diabetic friendly" food. As a result, he became frustrated with the limited options he had for dining out.
1 comment - Posted Oct 22, 2009
A large Kaiser Permanente study, published this month in Diabetes Care, has found that women with diabetes are 26 percent more likely to develop the very rapid and irregular heartbeat known as atrial fibrillation (AF) than women without diabetes. Although not a killer on its own, AF is a serious condition that requires medical treatment and can cause complications. In addition to fatigue, the poor circulation that results from AF can lead to blood pooling and clotting, ultimately causing a stroke.
3 comments - Posted Oct 21, 2009
MONTREAL, Canada, 19 October 2009 - The International Diabetes Federation's 20th World Diabetes Congress opened today at the Palais de Congress in Montreal, Quebec. The five-day congress brings thousands of international delegates to the Canadian city to discuss burning issues in diabetes care and examine local, national and regional solutions to a growing global problem.
1 comment - Posted Oct 19, 2009
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Oct 13 - Women with metabolic syndrome in early pregnancy have a higher risk for preterm birth, according to study findings reported in the October 1st issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology.
0 comments - Posted Oct 16, 2009
The National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health (CDC) recommends that everyone, especially people with diabetes and other diseases, get both a seasonal flu vaccination and an H1N1 flu ("swine flu") vaccination this year.
6 comments - Posted Oct 16, 2009
October 12, 2009. Philadelphia, Pa. - Children in Philadelphia who attended public schools and shopped at corner stores before or after school purchased almost 360 calories of foods and beverages per visit, according to new research published in the journal Pediatrics. Chips, candy and sugar-sweetened beverages were the most frequently purchased items. This is the first study to document both what foods and beverages children purchased in local corner stores on their way to and from school, and the nutritional content of those items.
0 comments - Posted Oct 15, 2009
The human body is an amazing machine. The biological clock that ticks inside us to keep the machine running efficiently not only prompts us to sleep and eat on regular basis, but also apparently regulates blood sugar.
1 comment - Posted Oct 15, 2009
HealthDataManagement Breaking News, October 13, 2009 - All three health reform bills in the U.S. House and both of the Senate proposals include provisions to mandate increased use of electronic standards-based administrative/financial transactions, according to an analysis by the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), Englewood, Colo.
1 comment - Posted Oct 15, 2009
San Francisco, California - October 7, 2009 - MDLiveCare, an on-demand telehealth company, announced today at the Health2.0 conference in San Francisco a partnership with Google Health. The partnership includes the secure flow of medical data between MDLiveCare and Google Health, an online Personal Health Record (PHR). Specifically, any Google Health user that has an MDLiveCare HIPAA secure video, phone or email telehealth consultation with a board certified physician or mental health therapist will be able to share his or her medical records with the doctor in advance of the appointment and get records back after the appointment from that doctor.
0 comments - Posted Oct 14, 2009
"Self-monitoring blood glucose" (SMBG), a staple in the lives of most people with diabetes who take insulin, involves consistently monitoring and recording blood glucose levels before and after specific activities, such as eating, exercising, sleeping, and taking insulin. By observing the effects of certain foods and activities on their blood glucose levels, patients can learn exactly what works to raise or lower them. Thus, SMBG affords a kind of "fine tuning" approach to diabetes that empowers patients to adjust their medicine, modify their behavior, and manage their disease without always needing expert intervention.
1 comment - Posted Oct 13, 2009
A law signed by New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine that allows teachers to give emergency glucagon shots to students with diabetes has parents elated but has drawn strong opposition from teachers and nurses. The law also allows students with diabetes to test their own blood glucose levels and use insulin pumps while they are in the classroom, two activities that were not previously allowed.
15 comments - Posted Oct 12, 2009
Hyperglycemia is known to cause microvascular damage, which then creates complications such as proliferative retinopathy. However, this microvascular damage may also affect cognitive functioning even before it is reflected by more easily observed complications such as retinopathy. A study carried out by Eelco van Duinkerken and colleagues in the Netherlands found that "functional connectivity", which is "an indicator of functional interactions and information exchange between brain regions," was different in type 1's as compared to controls.
0 comments - Posted Oct 10, 2009
Taking Control Of Your Diabetes TCOYD (www.tcoyd.org) and DiabetesSisters (www.diabetessisters.org) are nationwide non-profit organizations with similar missions of motivating and educating people with diabetes. In 2010, TCOYD and DiabetesSisters are partnering to bring a unique, life-changing learning experience to women with diabetes. The First Annual Weekend for Women Conference hosted by DiabetesSisters and TCOYD will begin at 5pm on Saturday, May 22nd (immediately following the TCOYD Conference) in Raleigh, North Carolina and end at 5pm on Sunday, May 23rd. The Weekend for Women Conference will take place at Marriott City Center in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina. All participants will receive a single room at the hotel.
3 comments - Posted Oct 10, 2009
MSGI Security Solutions, which "serves the needs of counter-terrorism, public safety, law enforcement, and commercial security," has moved into a new area: diabetes detection. In fact, it has developed a handheld sensor that detects diabetes by measuring the level of acetone in the breath. The device, which employs carbon-based chemical sensors that detect organic vapors, is based upon nano sensors that NASA originally developed to make scientific measurements during space missions.
7 comments - Posted Oct 9, 2009
So close, and yet so far. It looks like there will be no marketing partnership for MannKind's ultra rapid-acting insulin product Afresa anytime soon. The company had planned to enter into a deal with a large pharmaceutical company by the end of this year, but now approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for their inhaled insulin won't be until January 2010, at the earliest.
3 comments - Posted Oct 8, 2009
In these challenging economic times, when unemployment is so high and insurance coverage is being lost, many people find themselves having to miss doctor's visits, skip preventive care, and do without their prescriptions. Change is in the air, but in the meantime, there are programs that can help.
3 comments - Posted Oct 8, 2009
The demise of Fen-phen dealt a body blow to hopes for an obesity pill that is actually effective. Unfortunately, the fen in Fen-phen, fenfluramine, caused grave pulmonary hypertension and heart valve problems. The phen part of the drug, though, was apparently just an innocent bystander. And now phen (phentermine) has resurfaced in a new pill that has posted some amazing results in Phase III clinical trials. Patients who were treated for 56 weeks with the new drug, Qnexa, lost an average of 14.7 percent of their weight, or 37 pounds.
8 comments - Posted Oct 7, 2009
A study coming out in the November issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology is reporting that type 2 men whose blood contained a high count of eosinophils, a sign of allergic inflammation, also had albumin in their urine, which is an early indication of kidney disease. Eosinophils are white blood cells that increase in number during an allergic reaction. Albumin is a protein in the blood that helps regulate blood volume and acts as a carrier for other molecules. Albumin is not normally found in the urine, however, because when healthy kidneys filter the blood, they retain what the body needs (like proteins) and allow only smaller "impurities" into the urine. But during diabetes, too much blood sugar can damage the filtering structures of the kidneys, causing them to thicken and become scarred. Eventually, they begin to leak, and protein (albumin) begins to pass into the urine.
0 comments - Posted Oct 6, 2009
Nature is wonderfully complex. During the second trimester of pregnancy, when the fetus is growing rapidly, hormones from the placenta begin to reduce the ability of the mother's insulin to bind with insulin receptors. Because the mother's insulin is consequently less able to shuttle glucose out of her bloodstream, the growing fetus is guaranteed a good supply of blood glucose.
0 comments - Posted Oct 6, 2009
The enthusiasm for inhaled insulin has waned, to say the least, since Exubera was pulled off the market by Pfizer. Following the Exubera debacle, the development of two other inhaled insulins (AIR by Eli Lilly and Alkermes, and AERx by Novo Nordisk) was halted as well.
12 comments - Posted Oct 5, 2009
Researchers at Children's Hospital in Boston think that they may have created the most reliable means yet of delivering drugs that cannot be taken orally. Their solution is to combine nanotechnology and magnetism to create a delivery system that is simple, but extremely durable and accurate.
2 comments - Posted Oct 3, 2009
"Poor medication adherence," the latest euphemism to replace the much-disliked "poor compliance," is a hot topic these days. According to the New England Health Institute, a third to a half of American patients don't take their medications as prescribed. And people with chronic conditions, including diabetes, are reportedly the worst when it comes to medication adherence and "persistence" (the length of time they continue to take a prescribed drug).
5 comments - Posted Oct 3, 2009
Having diabetes involves a lot of pretty complex arithmetic. You've got to calculate carbs from nutrition labels, total the calories and carbohydrates in a meal, calculate insulin dosage based on insulin-to-carbohydrate intake, and on and on. These tasks aren't simple: They require an understanding of measurement, estimation, time, logic, and multi-step operations, and the knowledge of which math skills to apply to each problem.
3 comments - Posted Oct 2, 2009
Dear Aisha and David - I am a 22-year-old woman with type 1, on a pump. I've only had one real boyfriend, and we broke up two months ago. He said that my diabetes didn't have anything to do with it, but I'm not sure. I think that the lows scared him. Sex with him was good, but I don't have much to compare it with.
7 comments - Posted Oct 2, 2009
"Ask any of the elite who have become truly massive beasts which anabolic substance has had the most profound effect upon their physique, and the answer from the largest mammals will unanimously be insulin." That's a quote from Iron Magazine, a publication for body builders. Apparently, injecting insulin for its anabolic properties is not uncommon among the "massive beasts," as several body-building websites actually contain instructions on how to do it and what types of insulin to use.
0 comments - Posted Oct 1, 2009
African Americans are more prone to type 2 diabetes than white Americans: In 2008, the CDC reported that the rate of diagnosed diabetes in African Americans was 11.8 percent, nearly twice that of whites at 6.6 percent. But why? Is it all in their genes? Previous nationwide studies, which may have seemed to support this conclusion, did not account for socioeconomic and environmental differences between African American and white communities. According to a new study, however, when African Americans and whites live in the same community and have comparable incomes, their rates of diabetes are similar.
2 comments - Posted Oct 1, 2009
September 2009
Clinical trials are conducted before a new drug is released for sale, in part to test for bad things that might happen when people take it. But clinical trials don't involve all that many people: several thousand at the most. After the clinical trials are successfully completed, however, the drug is sold to millions upon millions. Merck's sales of Januvia and Janumet, for example, totaled over a billion dollars in the first six months of this year alone.
0 comments - Posted Sep 30, 2009
The South, which swept a 2009 survey for fattest region, has achieved that dubious honor again when it comes to prevalence of type 2 diabetes. According to a recent study published in Population Health Metrics, it's the region with the highest percentage of type 2 diabetes when both diagnosed and undiagnosed cases are included. Mississippi is at the very top of the heap, followed by West Virginia, Louisiana, Texas, South Carolina, Alabama, and Georgia (15.8 to 16.6 percent for men and 12.4 to 14.8 percent for women).
0 comments - Posted Sep 28, 2009
One thing that really frustrates people with diabetes mellitus is the biopharma industry's focus on treatments rather than cures. A cure is what the diabetes community wants, not another band-aid. So the existence of a biopharma company that calls itself "CureDM" is promising, and its first product, Pancreate, seems to be on its way to fulfilling that promise.
18 comments - Posted Sep 28, 2009
The way information is presented to us makes a big difference in whether we are able to integrate that information into our daily lives. Although graphs and numbers may sway some people, putting educational materials into a culturally relevant context can be more effective. A recent study, for example, has found that a dietary program based on the Medicine Wheel Model for Nutrition can change eating patterns among Native Americans, who have the highest rates of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease of all ethnic groups.
2 comments - Posted Sep 26, 2009
For most of us, the biggest problem with losing lots of weight is the demoralizing process of watching ourselves gain it all back. But some people who lose weight manage to keep it off for good. How do they do it? Researchers from the Miriam Hospital recently examined their brain activity with functional magnetic resonance imaging and actually saw their restraint in action.
1 comment - Posted Sep 25, 2009
September 22, 2009 - A recent study of the economic burden of U.S. health disparities provides staggering proof that race is a social reality in America, with dramatic and troubling effects. According to the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, racial inequalities in health care access and quality added more than $50 billion a year in direct U.S health care costs from 2003 to 2006.
0 comments - Posted Sep 25, 2009
Metformin has always been the old reliable for treating new onset type 2 diabetes, but it's beginning to look like it's got a new calling as a cancer treatment. Diabetes Health recently reported on the fact that metformin reduces a type 2 person's risk of pancreatic cancer by up to 62 percent. It's also been observed that people with type 2 who take metformin have a much lower cancer incidence than those who don't. Now it appears that metformin can help with breast cancer treatment as well. A study of mice with breast cancer generated from human breast cancer cells has found that they remained tumor-free for nearly three months on metformin combined with doxorubicin, a standard cancer chemotherapy. In mice given only the doxorubicin, the tumors recurred.
1 comment - Posted Sep 25, 2009
Scientists have noted for a long time that the hormone leptin suppresses appetite. That's why they have been puzzled by the high levels of leptin found in obese people-shouldn't leptin decrease their appetites and act as a curb on their weight? Leptin also suppresses bone mass accrual, yet obese people do not suffer from loss or weakening of bone mass, despite their high leptin levels.
0 comments - Posted Sep 25, 2009
DAVIS, CA, SEPTEMBER 17, 2009 - While health officials have long suspected the link between obesity and soda consumption, research released today provides the first scientific evidence of the potent role soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages play in fueling California's expanding girth.
3 comments - Posted Sep 24, 2009
Even if they don't lose weight, a moderate aerobic exercise program can improve insulin sensitivity in obese adolescents who are sedentary.
4 comments - Posted Sep 23, 2009
Kansas City, Mo. - Moises Aldape helped Team Type 1 stamp its authority on the Tour of Missouri Sunday by winning the Michelob Ultra King of the Mountains title.
1 comment - Posted Sep 22, 2009
Suppose you've always wanted to start exercising, but you've procrastinated for awhile, a very, very long while. In fact, you are a comfortably sedentary 85 years old now, and it seems like it's too late to do any good. Well, according to new research published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, it's never too late.
0 comments - Posted Sep 21, 2009
That old dog is me (thirty-seven years living with diabetes). There's a lot to be said for teaching someone who's lived with diabetes for years new ways to manage diabetes, and some new things that have come into the marketplace recently.
9 comments - Posted Sep 20, 2009
We're drinking so much sugar-sweetened soda that it's become a taxing problem, according to a Health Policy Report published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine. Between 1977 and 2002, Americans doubled their intake of sugary beverages. Unfortunately, that's not good news for anyone but the beverage companies. Although high fructose corn syrup, sucrose, and fruit juice concentrates are naturally derived sweeteners (as opposed to artificial low- or no-calorie sweeteners), this added sugar has been linked to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.
24 comments - Posted Sep 19, 2009
By reprogramming skin cells from people with type 1 diabetes, scientists have produced beta cells that secrete insulin in response to changes in glucose levels. Dr. Douglas Melton and his colleagues at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute started by using the skin cells to generate induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Once they had iPS cells, the researchers manipulated them into developing into pancreatic islet (beta) cells.
3 comments - Posted Sep 19, 2009
Alexandria, VA (September 10, 2009)-This year, thousands of people in communities across the country will come together to demonstrate their support in the fight against diabetes by participating in the American Diabetes Association's Step Out: Walk to Fight Diabetes® event. Step Out is a fundraising walk that takes place in more than 160 cities to raise awareness about diabetes and to raise much needed funds to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Sep 19, 2009
Researchers at the Karolinsky Institute in Sweden have discovered that in people with type 2 diabetes, a gene in muscle tissue is "methylated"; that is, an extra methyl group is stuck to it, causing it to respond differently. The gene in question, PGC-1α, controls other genes that affect how glucose is metabolized by muscle cells. The end result of methylated PGC-1α is that muscle cells are less able to use glucose as an energy source.
0 comments - Posted Sep 18, 2009
For a while now, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) has been conducting clinical trials on the effectiveness of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) for people with type 1 diabetes. Last year, they issued their first two reports on their findings, showing that CGMs can improve control even for people who already have A1c's below 7%. That information has already had a powerful impact: It's convinced a number of large health insurers (including Aetna, Cigna, Kaiser Permanente, United Healthcare, and Wellpoint) to cover CGMs for type 1s, and it's led to the inclusion of CGMs in national standards of care for type 1 diabetes.
3 comments - Posted Sep 17, 2009
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (August 26, 2009) - The nation's nonprofit community health centers and free clinics saw a 13 percent increase in uninsured patients with diabetes seeking care during the first six months of 2009 versus the same period in 2008, according to the results of a national survey released today by humanitarian medical aid organization Direct Relief International.
3 comments - Posted Sep 17, 2009
Those of you who are familiar with the South know what kudzu is. An Asian vine that can grow a foot taller every day, it was brought to the American Southeast in the 1930s in a sadly boneheaded attempt to control erosion. Unfortunately, the little green visitor liked it here so much that in the decades since, it has colonized 10 million acres of farms and woods, becoming a massive and costly nuisance.
0 comments - Posted Sep 16, 2009
You might think that people with type 2 diabetes would know better than most what they should put into and leave out of their diets. At least, that was the expectation of researchers at the Wake Forest School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, when they set out to learn why people with type 2 are often overweight. What they found, however, surprised them. Their study of 2,757 type 2s showed that:
7 comments - Posted Sep 15, 2009
An Italian study of people with type 2 diabetes has found that 70 percent of those who followed a low-fat diet eventually needed diabetes drugs, as opposed to only 44 percent of those who ate a Mediterranean diet.
4 comments - Posted Sep 14, 2009
ALEXANDRIA, VA, Sep 01, 2009 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) - The American Diabetes Association Research Foundation has selected two scientists, University of Virginia Health System researcher Zhenqi Liu, MD, and Stanford University School of Medicine researcher Gerald Reaven, MD, to receive the American Diabetes Association-Novo Nordisk Clinical/Translational Research Award.
0 comments - Posted Sep 12, 2009
Visceral adipose tissue (VAT), familiarly known as visceral fat, has long been associated with metabolic risk. But VAT is closely correlated with liver fat, also called intrahepatic triglyceride (IHTG) content. As a result, Samuel Klein of the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri, set out to determine if liver fat is more closely correlated with complications in obese patients than VAT.
0 comments - Posted Sep 12, 2009
Adults newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes generally don't take to the idea of using insulin right off the bat. They're worried about gaining weight and fear low blood sugars. They're also concerned about whether they can manage the regimen and fear that taking insulin will lower their quality of life. Those concerns, however, might be assuaged by a study recently conducted by Ildiko Lingvay and his colleagues at the University of Texas Southwestern.
5 comments - Posted Sep 12, 2009
I remember it like it was yesterday. It was the night before Thanksgiving, and my family and I were driving to my parents' house for the holiday weekend. I am usually the one who drives, but this time my wife insisted on taking the wheel because I was so dizzy and light-headed that I could hardly stand upright. Over the course of the previous week, I had not been feeling well. I had been getting up frequently at night to use the bathroom, was insatiably thirsty, and had been so dizzy that I had actually fallen down several times.
7 comments - Posted Sep 11, 2009
The American Heart Association, noting a direct link between sugar consumption and the development of such conditions as cardiovascular disease and diabetes, has called upon Americans to drastically reduce their consumption of "added sugar." Added sugar is defined, reasonably enough, as sugar added to foods during processing, cooking, or at meals.
3 comments - Posted Sep 10, 2009
Juice extracted from North American lowbush blueberries, biotransformed with bacteria from the skin of the fruit, holds great promise as an anti-obesity and anti-diabetic agent. The study, published in the International Journal of Obesity, was conducted by researchers from the Université de Montréal, the Institut Armand-Frappier and the Université de Moncton who tested the effects of biotransformed juices compared to regular blueberry drinks on mice.
3 comments - Posted Sep 10, 2009
It's not on the market yet, but a patch composed of tiny needles, each the width of a few human hairs, could eventually replace hypodermic needles for most drug injections. Preliminary experiments with people with diabetes have shown that the patch can deliver insulin successfully and with less pain than a hypodermic.
5 comments - Posted Sep 9, 2009
Scientists and healthcare professionals have known for some time that low levels of vitamin D almost double the risk of cardiovascular disease in people with diabetes. But until now, they haven't known why.
1 comment - Posted Sep 8, 2009
Here's a sweet bit of news: Drinking sugar-free beverages sweetened with low-calorie sweeteners increases "dietary restraint," the ability of people to maintain long-term weight loss.
5 comments - Posted Sep 7, 2009
A South Carolina study has found that the DASH diet, originally designed to treat hypertension, is linked to a lower rate of type 2 diabetes in whites, but not in blacks or Hispanics.
0 comments - Posted Sep 4, 2009
Nick Jonas is only 16 years old, but he's already been a pop star for years. He's also had type 1 diabetes for nearly four of those years. When he spoke to journalists at the National Press Club recently, he was one of the youngest guests ever invited to speak there.
3 comments - Posted Sep 4, 2009
The famous Diabetes Control and Complications Trial, known to its friends as the DCCT, was the first to prove the power of "intensive control" of blood glucose to reduce the complications of diabetes. Although the ten-year study ended in 1993, researchers have continued to follow about 90 percent of the nearly 1,500 original DCCT volunteers. And the follow-up study, called the Epidemiology of Diabetes Interventions and Complications (EDIC), is measuring up to its illustrious parent in terms of demonstrating the value of tight control. According to results published in the July 27, 2009 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, microvascular and cardiovascular complications of type 1 diabetes are cut in half for patients with near-normal glucose.
11 comments - Posted Sep 4, 2009
According to a recent Pennsylvania study, kids need to learn to control themselves when it comes to food. Obviously, self-control is important for us all, kids and adults alike, when it comes to weight management. It’s equally apparent that children need to be taught by their parents to make healthy food choices. But parents who strictly forbid their children to eat many foods might be contributing to a lack of self-control in their offspring, thereby creating the very chubbiness that they were trying to avert.
2 comments - Posted Sep 4, 2009
Even though autumn is just around the corner, many places in the country still have a couple of hot spells left. And those surprise heat waves can be bad news for people with diabetes. It’s no secret that the elderly, the obese, and people with heart disease or respiratory conditions are vulnerable to heat-related illnesses. It’s less well known, however, that people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes are more likely than non-diabetics to suffer heat stroke, heat exhaustion, and heat cramps.
0 comments - Posted Sep 3, 2009
Researchers at Stanford University recently discovered that a mutated version of a gene may contribute to type 1 diabetes by sabotaging the functioning of the gene's normal version. Experiments conducted on mice with a diabetes-type disease showed that the mutated variant may prevent the healthy version from protecting the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas from attack by the immune system.
0 comments - Posted Sep 3, 2009
Eating fat is usually not very helpful when it comes to losing weight. According to a researcher at Ohio State University, however, two natural oils that contain "good fats" can melt away pounds in postmenopausal obese women with type 2 diabetes.
1 comment - Posted Sep 2, 2009
Research by Utah scientists has clarified the mechanism behind the long-held notion that sugar somehow "feeds" tumors. In addition to suggesting a new way to fight cancer, the findings provide insight into how the body metabolizes glucose and may eventually affect treatments for diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Sep 1, 2009
August 2009
In a Canadian study involving 42 patients with type 1 diabetes, nearly half of the subjects had an abnormal response to wheat proteins. Scientists at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and the University of Ottawa, who conducted the study, found that the patients' over-reaction to wheat is linked to genes that are associated with type 1 diabetes.
5 comments - Posted Aug 31, 2009
See the new video on DiabetesHealthTV with columnist Riva Greenberg. She discusses her new book 50 Diabetes Myths That Can Ruin Your Life: And the 50 Diabetes Truths That Can Save It.
0 comments - Posted Aug 28, 2009
Being a protein can be a dirty, sticky job. Most proteins in the body have carbohydrates stuck all over them. And when a carbohydrate sticks to a protein, it may change the way the protein works or how the protein interacts with other proteins.
1 comment - Posted Aug 28, 2009
A Japanese company whose biggest moneymaker is the sale of synthetic fabrics announced a few days ago that it has developed an insulin nasal spray for people with diabetes. The news brought an investor surge that lifted the value of its stocks by 10 percent.
0 comments - Posted Aug 28, 2009
Our genes are like a recipe for a human. It's a very complicated recipe, determining how much of this protein and how much of that enzyme need to be added into the mix in order for us to function properly, but our genes are pretty good at getting it right. Although we are still learning how the recipe works, what ingredients (gene products) are involved, and when are they are produced, our knowledge is growing fast.
2 comments - Posted Aug 28, 2009
Everyone knows that eating only high fat food is unhealthy way down the road, but we don't really worry that eating a burger will hurt us by next week. Unfortunately, however, it turns out that a high fat diet damages our health (and our brain functioning) a lot sooner than we would like to think. In fact, new research shows that the effects are felt within only ten days. As far as I'm concerned, this was already shown conclusively in the film "Super Size Me," in which director Morgan Spurlock personally examined the effects of fast food on the human body. For one month, he ate only at McDonald's, ordering everything on the menu and "super-sizing" his order whenever asked. Right before our eyes, Spurlock began looking sicker and sicker.
11 comments - Posted Aug 28, 2009
In our last issue, we published a letter from reader Sheila Payne, who wrote that we had been far too positive about continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) in our June/July article Get the Facts on Continuous Glucose Monitoring. But her opinion provoked a stack of letters from people who believe that the benefits of CGM substantially outweigh its negatives. To let you in on the debate, we are reprinting Ms. Payne's thought-provoking letter here, followed by two equally thoughtful responses from readers.
8 comments - Posted Aug 28, 2009
Canadian scientists have reported that a hormone found in the gut has the power to lower glucose production by signaling the brain and liver to do so. When the researchers activated its receptors in lab rats, they found that the hormone, called cholecystokinin (CCK) peptide, rapidly lowered the animals' blood glucose levels.
0 comments - Posted Aug 27, 2009
The PreDx Diabetes Risk Score determines risk of developing type 2 diabetes within five years
0 comments - Posted Aug 26, 2009
A new glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) analog for type 2s that might require dosing only once a month is now in pre-clinical (animal) studies. GLP-1, which increases insulin secretion from the pancreas, is a mighty helpful molecule, but with a sadly brief lifespan. It's broken down in the body within minutes by the enzyme DPP-4. That's why drugs like Merck's Januvia, a DPP-4 inhibitor, is effective: blocking DPP-4 subsequently increases the amount of GLP-1 in the system.
0 comments - Posted Aug 25, 2009
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning against the use of GDH-PQQ blood glucose test strips by people with diabetes who are taking medications that contain non-glucose sugars. [Note: GDH-PQQ is the abbreviation of "glucose dehydrogenase pyrroloquinoline quinone," a chemical that reacts with the non-glucose sugars maltose, galactose, and xylose, which are contained in some therapeutic products.]
7 comments - Posted Aug 24, 2009
Deferoxamine, a drug already FDA-approved for the treatment of disorders related to excess iron in the blood, may help doctors heal stubborn leg and foot wounds in people with diabetes. Scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine found that with deferoxamine, small cuts in diabetic mice healed 10 days faster than they did in untreated mice: 13 days as opposed to 23 days. If deferoxamine works similarly on humans, it could significantly speed the healing of diabetic wounds.
0 comments - Posted Aug 22, 2009
Concerned by the huge number of Americans - 57 million - who are now considered to have prediabetes, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) has launched "My Health Advisor."
2 comments - Posted Aug 22, 2009
Three days after a routine physical last November, 84-year-old Louis Zorich was called by his doctor and told that he had type 2 diabetes. The first words out of the seasoned actor's mouth were "There's been a mistake." Louis, who's been married to Academy Award-winning actress Olympia Dukakis for 47 years, proceeded to explain (incorrectly) to his doctor, "Men don't get diabetes. My three brothers don't have it, but my mother had it....It may be genetic, but only the female side of my family can have diabetes."
2 comments - Posted Aug 21, 2009
It's called an anti-Ras drug, but it's got no problem with reggae. It's a multi-talented new pill against pancreatic cancer that just might also come to the rescue of pancreatic beta cells. Its pancreatic cancer-fighting attributes are currently being tested in a human clinical trial, but a modified version has been shown to maintain normal insulin production in diabetic mice.
1 comment - Posted Aug 21, 2009
South African researchers have found that in areas where tuberculosis is endemic, nearly one in three children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes tests positive when given a skin test for the disease. Although the positive test results do not mean that these young people will inevitably develop active TB, they do run a very high risk of doing so.
3 comments - Posted Aug 20, 2009
In June, I attended the ADA's 69th Scientific Sessions Conference that was held in New Orleans this year. Among other presentations, I listened to Mary Sullivan's very interesting talk offering practical advice on better inpatient diabetes care. We've written numerous times online about how hospital glycemic control needs to be improved. For example, you can read our article on DiabetesHealth.com called, "U.S. Academic Medical Centers Are Not Cutting the Mustard."
0 comments - Posted Aug 20, 2009
One of the major complications of diabetes is diabetic nephropathy, a loss of kidney function that may lead to renal failure. As kidney disease progresses, the barrier that keeps large molecules out of the urine, called the glomerular barrier, begins to break down. With the barrier failing, certain large molecules begin to migrate into the urine. One of those hefty molecules is immunoglobulin M, or IgM.
1 comment - Posted Aug 19, 2009
The American Diabetes Association estimates that about 18 million Americans have diabetes. Given that millions of people have lost their jobs during the current recession, the law of averages would suggest that at least a few hundred thousand folks with diabetes are now unemployed. Loss of a job, unfortunately, usually means a concurrent loss of health insurance. For those hundreds of thousands of people with diabetes, no health insurance means big trouble.
0 comments - Posted Aug 18, 2009
The theory of unintended consequences has gotten another boost. Although two drugs designed to slow the loss of kidney function in people with type 1 diabetes turned out to be busts, they had a wonderful but entirely unexpected side effect: Eye damage was reduced by 65 to 70 percent in the patients taking them.
6 comments - Posted Aug 17, 2009
Only a handful of studies have examined the relationship of a woman's menstrual cycle to her blood glucose control, but they have one finding in common: menstruation's effect on blood glucose is as varied as each individual's disease. As a result, blood glucose testing remains the only way to know how a woman's monthly cycle affects her diabetes control.
8 comments - Posted Aug 15, 2009
Onglyza (saxagliptin), a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor produced by AstraZeneca and Bristol-Myers Squibb, has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.
1 comment - Posted Aug 15, 2009
If it's a pump, then where's the tubing? Well, it looks like another company has put a patch on that problem. Medingo Ltd., a company held by Elron Electronic Industries, has received FDA approval to market the Solo MicroPump Insulin Delivery System. The Solo System consists of an insulin-dispensing patch and a remote control device that increases or decreases the patch's rate of secretion.
5 comments - Posted Aug 15, 2009
This year the American Association of Diabetes Educators (AADE) went deep south for its annual conference, hosting the event in Atlanta, Georgia, from August 3rd through August 9th. Diabetes Health was there, hobnobbing with thousands of attendees and hundreds of companies, and it was an amazing experience.
0 comments - Posted Aug 15, 2009
Endocrinologists at the University of Chicago say that lack of sufficient sleep may contribute to insulin resistance and decreased glucose tolerance, two conditions that up the long-term risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Aug 14, 2009
There's a gene whose name you should remember because it could mark a crucial point in the war on type 1 diabetes.
2 comments - Posted Aug 13, 2009
Now there's an iPhone and iPod Touch app for diabetes. AgaMatrix, Inc., the makers of the WaveSense line of blood glucose monitoring products, has announced the launch of the WaveSense Diabetes Manager, an electronic diabetes logbook software application that runs on the two Apple products.
The WaveSense Diabetes Manager, in development and testing for over a year, lays the foundation for a series of upcoming products that will take advantage of the iPhone and other mobile platforms to help people with diabetes manage the disease. AgaMatrix reports that the WaveSense app provides users with the following features:
1 comment - Posted Aug 12, 2009
Researchers have recently reported that people with the lowest levels of a protein that regulates sex hormones, "sex hormone-binding globulin," were 10 times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those with the highest levels of SHBG. In short, the lower a person's SHBG levels, the higher his or her risk of developing the disease.
0 comments - Posted Aug 11, 2009
A 43-year-old Iraq war veteran with diabetes is living in Texas with his wife and four young children when he is told that he must prepare for the amputation of one of his legs. The spreading, non-healing wounds and their complications make the amputation necessary to save not just his limb, but his life, his doctors tell him. But he refuses to proceed with the amputation surgery.
5 comments - Posted Aug 10, 2009
Until the twentieth century, type 1 diabetes was a fatal disease. Once we came to understand how insulin works in the body, however, everything changed. The discovery of the role of insulin was a group effort by people who didn't know each other, but built on each others' work. In 1869, a German medical student named Paul Langerhans figured out the regulatory role of insulin in the mammal body. In honor of his efforts, his name was given to the islets of Langerhans, where insulin is synthesized within the beta cells of the pancreas. Other Europeans and North Americans made important advancements right up until January 23, 1922, when a 14-year-old boy who was dying of diabetes at Toronto General Hospital was given the first successful injection of cow insulin.
2 comments - Posted Aug 10, 2009
Last May, 24-year-old Charlie Kimball was in Car #35, taking Turn 3 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the Firestone Freedom 100. He was in radio contact with his pit crew, who informed him that he had a headwind coming out of the turn and onto the 5/8 mile "straight." Charlie kept an eye on the car next to him, moving closer and beginning to crowd it on the inside. Having raced professionally for six years, he knew that he had to make a move, and soon. He shifted into sixth gear and accelerated.
2 comments - Posted Aug 8, 2009
A study from Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston says that magnetic resonance imaging could become a useful tool for diagnosing diabetes and helping doctors determine the proper course of treatment.
3 comments - Posted Aug 8, 2009
A study of the sugar consumption habits of 30,000 Americans by the American Dietetic Association concludes that race/ethnicity, family income and education levels are important factors in how much sugar a person eats.
1 comment - Posted Aug 8, 2009
Initially diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, Rob subsequently discovered that he had type 1. Knowing that he needed to exercise more, he returned to professional surfing. Today, he is a sponsored professional athlete who uses a CGM.
10 comments - Posted Aug 7, 2009
Most clinical studies of new drugs are conducted primarily on white men, whether or not they are most affected by the disease the drug is intended to treat. African Americans, for example, are 1.6 times more likely to have diabetes than non-Hispanic whites. Why should we assume that what works for white males will also be effective for African Americans, Hispanics, Asians, or, for that matter, women?
0 comments - Posted Aug 6, 2009
(The Clinical Trials Connection is online at www.trials.jdrf.org)
0 comments - Posted Aug 6, 2009
Metformin is one of the oldest and most tried-and-true diabetes treatments around, but apparently it has a new talent. According to research from the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas, good ol' metformin reduces a type 2 person's risk of pancreatic cancer by 62 percent.
2 comments - Posted Aug 5, 2009
In April of 2008, our healthy nine-year-old son, Gaspar, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. After his two days in the ICU and a week in the hospital, a new life began for all of us. Although we couldn't immediately grasp all its implications and were simultaneously dealing with our shaken world, we gave the situation a "think outside the box" approach. When the endocrinologist told us, "That's the way it is. Just focus on the controls and all will be fine," we asked whether the condition might be cured or attenuated if we acted quickly at the beginning. We were met with the usual answer: "There's nothing you can do. Just focus on the controls."
7 comments - Posted Aug 3, 2009
Oil Lowers Body Fat, But Don't Rub It In
Eating fat is usually not very helpful when it comes to losing weight. According to a researcher at Ohio State University, however, two natural oils that contain "good fats" can melt away pounds in postmenopausal obese women with type 2 diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Aug 2, 2009
Eating fat is usually not very helpful when it comes to losing weight. According to a researcher at Ohio State University, however, two natural oils that contain "good fats" can melt away pounds in postmenopausal obese women with type 2 diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Aug 2, 2009
With over 57 million Americans at risk for type 2 diabetes, how do clinicians decide whom to bump to the front of the line for preventive care and treatment? The PreDx Diabetes Risk Score, which employs a few simple blood tests to identify patients at highest risk of developing type 2 diabetes within five years, might help caregivers prioritize their efforts.
0 comments - Posted Aug 1, 2009
It's very likely that you, like most people, believe many myths about diabetes. If you do, you might actually be doing yourself harm. Learning the truth can empower you (as it did me) to make choices and take actions that increase the quality and length of your life.
9 comments - Posted Aug 1, 2009
Xenotransplantation ("zee-no-transplantation") may sound like something from a space invasion novel, but it's actually the practice of transplanting organs, cells, or tissues from one animal species into another. With scientific advances taking place so rapidly and with so many patients desperate for organ transplants, it seems plausible (and pretty likely) that one day xenotransplantation will be commonplace.
0 comments - Posted Aug 1, 2009
July 2009
In an era when tobacco cessation programs are being cut from tight budgets, we need to be intentional and creative with tobacco cessation opportunities. According to Dr. Steven Schroeder of the Smoking Cessation Leadership Center at the UCSF School of Medicine, changing the way we view tobacco dependence is necessary to reduce tobacco use and save lives. If we all work together to increase the cessation rate from 2.5 percent to 10 percent, we can save 1.2 million additional lives!
1 comment - Posted Jul 31, 2009
A new treatment for receding gums that uses patients' own blood to encourage regeneration seems to have "legs" and hold up over the long term, according to a small study by researchers at Tufts University in Medford, Mass.
1 comment - Posted Jul 31, 2009
San Francisco's Winterland Arena, an old ice skating rink converted into a music venue in 1966 by rock promoter Bill Graham, became legendary for the shows that happened there. It was the site of some of the most memorable moments in rock ‘n' roll history, and through its back door once walked some of the greatest stars ever known. Although Winterland no longer exists, its door lives on, and that very door is now available for purchase!
0 comments - Posted Jul 30, 2009
May 5 - Ann Arbor, MI - In the first study of the effects of statins on the concentrations of both low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C; known as the "bad" cholesterol) and low-density lipoprotein particles (LDL-P) in patients with metabolic syndrome, it was shown that even though the statins lowered the concentrations of LDL-C to target levels, the patients retained considerable residual risk for cardiovascular events because LDL-P concentrations were not reduced to a similar extent. A pre-print version of the study in Diabetes Care is available online at http://dx.doi.org/10.2337/dc08-1681, and the final version will be available in print in the June 2009 issue, as well as online at the same URL.
0 comments - Posted Jul 29, 2009
A protein that builds up in the pancreases of baboons and leads to the suppression of insulin-producing beta cells, may provide one of the most significant indicators yet for predicting the onset of type 2 diabetes.
1 comment - Posted Jul 28, 2009
Banting Gives It Away - Insulin was discovered in 1921 by Fred Banting and Charles Best. In a generous gesture that unfortunately didn't start a trend, they sold the patent for a dollar so that cheap insulin would quickly become available. It worked like a charm: within two years, Eli Lilly had sold 60 million units of its purified extract of pig and cow pancreas.
17 comments - Posted Jul 27, 2009
High percentages of endocrinologists, primary care physicians, and managed care organizations surveyed by a research firm say they would like to see additional GLP-1 analogues like Amylin/Eli Lilly's Byetta® and DPP-IV inhibitors like Merck's Januvia® available to treat type 2 diabetes.
5 comments - Posted Jul 25, 2009
Researchers at Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut, have found a brain enzyme that, when blocked, curbs appetite and increases energy levels-both crucial factors in controlling and losing weight.
0 comments - Posted Jul 25, 2009
After experiencing blurry vision and excessive thirst, Mr. R visits his primary care doctor, who tests him and diagnoses diabetes and high lipid levels. Mr. R is placed on hypoglycemic and statin medications and sent to a dietitian for nutritional advice, but he is confused about to how to shop and cook according to the new recommendations. In the next weeks, he experiences dangerous blood glucose swings and inadequate improvement in his LDL level. His primary care doctor refers him to an endocrinologist, but the next available appointment is three months away. What now?
6 comments - Posted Jul 24, 2009
According to results of a phase II clinical trial at the University of Texas Medical School, a low dose of oral interferon alpha can preserve pancreatic beta cell function in newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes patients. Interferons are proteins produced by the cells of the immune system in response to challenges like a virus or a tumor cell. They work by inhibiting viral replication in the host cell, activating natural killer cells, and increasing the activity of other immune system cells such as lymphocytes.
0 comments - Posted Jul 24, 2009
Never underestimate the power of people with diabetes and their families. When we as a consumer group purchase more fruits and vegetables, walk or bicycle instead of taking the car, and educate ourselves about a healthy lifestyle, we are addressing global issues as well as personal ones and can have a strong, positive effect on the future.
1 comment - Posted Jul 23, 2009
For obese people, who often go on to develop type 2 diabetes, the magic bullet would be a drug that causes weight loss without surgery or the misery of drastic diets that often fail. So, news about a drug that produced dramatically slimmer lab rats in just a week should make them-and people with diabetes-perk up.
0 comments - Posted Jul 23, 2009
A man who has been married for 15 years suddenly begins losing weight and buying new clothes. He starts staying late at work and taking weekend business trips, unusual behaviors for him. His wife thinks he is having an affair. Why?
0 comments - Posted Jul 22, 2009
Could the medical community be overlooking 2.5 million people who have diabetes? Currently, 23.6 million children and adults in the United States, or 7.8 percent of the population, have diabetes. Although an estimated 17.9 million of them have been diagnosed, 5.7 million (nearly one quarter) are unaware that they have the disease. If lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) people comprise 10 percent of the U.S. population, then 10 percent of people with diabetes are part of the LGBT community-about 2.5 million people.*
1 comment - Posted Jul 22, 2009
Minneapolis-based Medtronic Inc. is recalling some lots of its Quick-set infusion sets over concerns that they may cause insulin pumps to deliver too much or too little insulin.
1 comment - Posted Jul 21, 2009
Have you ever come home from work or shopping after a long day on your feet, and all you wanted in life was to sit down and put them up? When you rested your feet on an ottoman, you immediately began to relax. The physiological reason you felt so much better was the slight widening of the peripheral capillary blood vessels in your feet-the natural response of relaxation. As the vessels opened up, more blood flowed to your feet, providing nutrients and oxygen. The foot pain and fatigue started to fade as the tissues were nourished. Ahhhh!
1 comment - Posted Jul 20, 2009
Growth hormones, peer pressure, independence struggles, and mood swings: welcome to the teenage years! There's nothing like a warning glance from a fed-up teenager to make a parent retreat. As your child takes more control of his or her diabetes, it becomes ever more tempting to step back and avoid the friction that sometimes comes from being involved. Nevertheless, your teenager needs your reliable presence more than ever. The beauty, strength, and sheer courage our kids exhibit in meeting their teenage challenges can inspire us to stand up and work with them to keep their health and well-being firmly in the forefront of their minds. Each child and each situation is different, but here are a few suggestions for staying on your teen's diabetes team.
0 comments - Posted Jul 17, 2009
The Organic Center (TOC), a leading research institute focused on the science of organic food and farming, announced that a balanced, organic diet-both before and during pregnancy-can significantly reduce a child's likelihood of becoming overweight or obese or developing diabetes.
1 comment - Posted Jul 17, 2009
This article was submitted by GlaxoSmithKline, makers of LOVAZA, a medication to lower very high triglycerides, made from omega-3 fish oil.
0 comments - Posted Jul 16, 2009
Rhode Island researchers say they have found strong evidence that links the level of nitrates in the environment and food supply to increases in deaths from such diseases as diabetes, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's-all insulin-resistant ailments.
1 comment - Posted Jul 16, 2009
Medicare offers: Screenings for people at risk, Diabetes self-management training, Medical nutrition therapy services, Hemoglobin A1c tests, Glucose monitors, test strips, lancets, insulin, and some insulin pumps, Glaucoma tests, Foot exams, foot treatment, and therapeutic shoes, Flu and pneumonia shots, and Cholesterol and lipid checks.
1 comment - Posted Jul 15, 2009
An analysis of ten trials involving statin therapy among 70,000 participants has led an international team of cardiologists to recommend that that the cholesterol-lowering drugs be prescribed for people who do not have heart disease.
2 comments - Posted Jul 15, 2009
Obesity has always been one of the major precursors to type 2 diabetes because of its ill effects on the body's ability to properly use insulin. But until now, scientists haven't been able to say with certainty just what happens in obese people to increase their insulin resistance.
0 comments - Posted Jul 14, 2009
People often ask me, "Why limit diabetes-related services to the iPhone when there are so many other cell phones out there?" I always answer them by asking, "How many applications have you downloaded onto your cell phone?"
11 comments - Posted Jul 13, 2009
April 2009 was an exciting month at the University of Alberta. It marked the tenth anniversary of an unprecedented approach to islet transplantation, recognized globally as the "Edmonton Protocol." Each year since that milestone has produced evidence of progress in the art of islet isolation and the science of the transplant process. I know this because I lived it. I am patient number thirty-three, one of the many who have witnessed the evolution of this continuing innovation.
7 comments - Posted Jul 11, 2009
Dear Aisha and David: I am a 66-year-old woman who has had diabetes for over 64 years. My husband is 52. He wants sex two or more times day. I hate it. I have no sexual drive, and most of the time it is painful. It was not always like this, but he has always wanted more sex than any man I know! We talk about things, but he basically ignores a lot of what I say when it comes to sex. He is actually a very caring person and has put up with a lot considering all the complications I have after 64 years of diabetes. We have been together for 18 years (married for nine). He waits on me hand and foot. I have to tell him to let me do things myself!
12 comments - Posted Jul 10, 2009
A 24-week study of the effects of red yeast rice on the cholesterol levels of people who cannot take statins shows that the ancient Asian food could be a viable statin alternative.
2 comments - Posted Jul 9, 2009
Women who frequently snore-at least three nights a week-run a substantially higher risk of developing gestational diabetes during pregnancy than non-snorers.
0 comments - Posted Jul 9, 2009
Of all the quests that researchers have undertaken in search of a cure or decisive treatment for type 1 diabetes, the search for a vaccine has to be the boldest. But how would you develop such a vaccine, and how would it work?
2 comments - Posted Jul 9, 2009
I would exercise if I had more time... if I had a health club membership... if it didn't hurt so much... if I knew what exercises to do... if I could do it with my family... if I could control my blood sugar...
0 comments - Posted Jul 8, 2009
Roche Diabetes Care Announces Unique Coaching Program for Diabetes Educators as Part of Long-Term Commitment to Fight the Disease
1 comment - Posted Jul 8, 2009
The National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP) is working hard to change people's attitudes about diabetes. A federally funded program sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the NDEP has more than 200 partners at the federal, state, and local levels, all working together to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Jul 7, 2009
The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) has called for urgent assessment and responses from regulatory authorities into a possible link between the use of insulin glargine (an insulin analog) and increased risk of cancer. The proposed link is based on findings published on June 26, 2009, in Diabetelogia, the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD).
2 comments - Posted Jul 6, 2009
UK-based GW Pharmaceuticals has entered into a strategic alliance with Professor Mike Cawthorne and the Clore Laboratory, University of Buckingham, to research the use of cannabinoids-chemical compounds derived from marijuana-in the treatment of type 2 diabetes.
2 comments - Posted Jul 5, 2009
Scientists have identified five genetic biomarkers that predict how well a type 2 patient will respond to the drug Actos. Their work could be the first step toward a system that would allow doctors to predetermine which drugs will best help each person with diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Jul 3, 2009
By inhibiting the expression of a gene called sirtuin 1, Yale researchers have been able to reduce blood glucose levels, decrease the liver's production of glucose, and increase insulin sensitivity in rats conditioned to exhibit type 2 symptoms. A happy byproduct of their research is a simultaneous lowering of cholesterol levels.
0 comments - Posted Jul 3, 2009
How many times during your work with young people and their families have you wished that you could really help them through a rough time in their lives? Young people with diabetes and their families often feel overwhelmed, both physically and emotionally, by all that they must learn and manage. They can feel very alone if they don't know anyone who can understand their diabetes fears and trials.
0 comments - Posted Jul 2, 2009
Patriotism, parades, parties, and pyrotechnics - July Fourth is a high intensity day of celebrations and national pride. In many towns, families move from one exciting event to the next, and the day can be very unpredictable. Still, parents of children with diabetes want carefree time with their families, and children don't want to think about diabetes details. A bit of advanced planning and packing can make this festive day much easier.
0 comments - Posted Jul 2, 2009
Genentech, a bioscience firm famous for its development of antibodies designed to combat cancer, has entered a $350 million agreement with Bayhill Therapeutics to assist in development of BHT-3021, a drug that treats type 1 diabetes by reducing or stopping immune system attacks on pancreatic beta cells.
2 comments - Posted Jul 1, 2009
June 2009
Every time I return from the American Diabetes Association (ADA) Scientific Sessions conference, my head is so full of information that I need a week or two to sort through it. But now I've had a chance to choose what I think are the top five things that you need to know. Here they are...
0 comments - Posted Jun 30, 2009
Until now, care for insulin-dependent diabetes has focused on the delivery of insulin combined with frequent blood glucose (BG) testing. Keeping your A1c down is, and always will be, the name of the game. But numerous studies have shown us in the last few years that having access to continuous glucose data has a huge impact. How you deliver the insulin doesn't necessarily matter-you can use a pump, a syringe, or an insulin pen, it's knowing your personal BG trends that makes all the difference.
4 comments - Posted Jun 29, 2009
The National Changing Diabetes Program (NCDP) is an organization working within the healthcare community to elevate diabetes on the national health agenda and improve the lives of people with this devastating disease. Recently, the NCDP commissioned a new study on the growing influence of diabetes on the U.S. economy and population. The NCDP also is taking steps to reduce the increasing impact of diabetes on the United States.
1 comment - Posted Jun 26, 2009
Rachel and her husband adopted a beautiful baby girl in November of 2008. Their daughter is now seven months old. You can read Rachel's article about diabetes and adoption here.
5 comments - Posted Jun 26, 2009
In May, 2009, a jury in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia found that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) discriminated against Jeff Kapche when it refused to hire him as a Special Agent because of his diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Jun 26, 2009
The American Heart Association (AHA) has added weight training to the list of exercises it recommends for people with type 2 diabetes to reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease. Heart and blood vessel diseases account for nearly 70 percent of deaths among type 2s.
0 comments - Posted Jun 25, 2009
One of the fondest hopes of people with type 1 diabetes has long been for the creation of an artificial pancreas, a reliable combination of automated glucose monitoring and insulin delivery that could serve in place of a defunct pancreas.
14 comments - Posted Jun 24, 2009
With Type 2 diabetes emerging as an epidemic, primary care clinicians need to become savvy at initiating and adjusting insulin. Given the nationwide shortage of endocrinologists, referring all patients on insulin for endocrine appointments is not realistic in most areas of the country.
0 comments - Posted Jun 24, 2009
A surgeon who has been at the forefront of exploring bariatric surgery as a potentially curative treatment for type 2 diabetes is calling for it to be made accessible to more people.
5 comments - Posted Jun 23, 2009
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has learned that some stolen vials of the long-acting insulin Levemir made by Novo Nordisk Inc. have reappeared and are being sold in the U.S. market. Three lots or a total of 129,000 vials of this product were stolen in all. These stolen insulin vials may not have been stored and handled properly and may be dangerous for patients to use.
1 comment - Posted Jun 22, 2009
In 1993, I published an article entitled "Is non-compliance a dirty word?" in The Diabetes Educator in which I expressed my sadness that people with diabetes were actually getting blamed by their health care providers for not following treatment advice (1). I suggested that the patient's failure might really be a failure in the partnership (or lack thereof) between patient and provider. Fifteen years ago, I challenged diabetes educators to work together with medical practitioners to change noncompliance from a dirty word to a rare occurrence. So how are we doing today?
21 comments - Posted Jun 19, 2009
In 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration published strong warnings that the type 2 diabetes drug exenatide (trade name Byetta) might increase risk of acute pancreatitis, a painful inflammation of the pancreas. The FDA's action came in the wake of reports that 30 exenatide users had come down with pancreatitis and that six of them had died from the condition.
1 comment - Posted Jun 19, 2009
I hear voices in my surroundings as the cloud of confusion gradually begins to lift. "Curtis, can you hear me?" "Curtis, what was the score of the football game?" "Curtis, do you know where you are?"
6 comments - Posted Jun 18, 2009
This is a nice salad to serve with a summer barbecue. It also makes a wonderful addition to a summer picnic. Double the recipe to serve more people.
0 comments - Posted Jun 18, 2009
The A1c test (also called the HbA1c test), which establishes average blood sugar levels over a three-month period, should replace fasting plasma glucose and oral glucose tolerance tests as the standard for diagnosing diabetes.
6 comments - Posted Jun 17, 2009
I attended the annual meeting of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE), held from May 14th to 18th, 2009. Here's a re-cap of the buzz about ICU glycemic control, prediabetes, and vitamin D.
0 comments - Posted Jun 17, 2009
Introduced to South Africa by the Cape Malays, this Indonesian curried meat loaf is to South Africa what Moussaka is to Greece and Lasagne is to Italy. Traditionally, Bobotie is served with yellow rice (add turmeric), chutney and banana slices dipped in milk. This is a tasty meat loaf to pack in the cooler for a summer picnic.
0 comments - Posted Jun 16, 2009
Gale Fullerton is a 65-year-old Californian who has the distinction of being a Joslin 50-Year medal winner. Elliott P. Joslin, M.D., knew that good self-management was the key to minimizing long-term diabetes complications, and the medal program was designed as an incentive for those committed to good diabetes care. In 1970, Joslin Diabetes Center expanded the program and began awarding a 50-year bronze medal. They presented the first 75-year medal in 1996.
22 comments - Posted Jun 16, 2009
Drug companies spend billions of dollars on research, and it's obvious that they spend more billions on advertising. Well, according to the New York Times, they spend the most billions on giving nice things to doctors: pens, samples, banquets, trips, and educational opportunities among them. For doctors, in fact, there is a free lunch: Pharma companies spend as much as a billion a year just on lunches for doctors. And over 90 percent of doctors have accepted at least some of this largesse from the industry.
5 comments - Posted Jun 12, 2009
Patients with type 2 diabetes reduced their risk of having a foot amputated by 36 percent when they took fenofibrate, a drug designed to lower blood fat levels.
0 comments - Posted Jun 12, 2009
A previously unknown human protein, called CHC22, may give scientists a powerful new tool for understanding type 2 diabetes, according to researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, and Harvard Medical School.
0 comments - Posted Jun 11, 2009
Bayer Diabetes Care's new A1c monitor enables people with diabetes to check their A1c levels at home. The FDA-approved A1CNow SELFCHECK is not considered a replacement for a healthcare provider's A1c test, but rather a tool with which to monitor A1c levels between doctor visits. A1c's provide an average assessment of blood sugar levels over the past three months and are an indicator of how well diabetes is being managed
5 comments - Posted Jun 11, 2009
The World Health Organization (WHO) is still deciding whether to declare a global pandemic
0 comments - Posted Jun 10, 2009
Over the years, gastric bypass surgery has proven an effective means of controlling-and even reversing-type 2 diabetes in
"super-obese" patients (those with a body mass index of 50 or above; usually more than 200 pounds above ideal body weight).
3 comments - Posted Jun 10, 2009
Obese lab mice with severe type 2 diabetes had their blood glucose levels restored to normal and experienced a doubling in physical activity when sensitivity to the hormone leptin was restored to a portion of their hypothalamus.
3 comments - Posted Jun 9, 2009
University of Cambridge researchers are reporting that people with type 2 diabetes who maintain strict control of their blood sugar-defined as lowering their A1c levels by 0.9% over a five-year period-can lower their risk of non-fatal heart attacks by 17 percent.
2 comments - Posted Jun 5, 2009
As you probably know by now, President Obama's first nominee to the Supreme Court is Judge Sonia Sotomayor. If she is confirmed to the lifelong post, Sotomayor will be not only the first Hispanic to sit on the high court, but also the first Justice with type 1 diabetes.
59 comments - Posted Jun 5, 2009
As Congress and President Obama get set to tackle healthcare reform, the American Association of Diabetes Educators (AADE) has begun a multi-front battle to seek Medicare designation for all certified diabetes educators (CDEs).
1 comment - Posted Jun 5, 2009
Spanish university researchers have isolated a new species of bacteria-which they found in sewer sludge-that is able to break down cholesterol.
0 comments - Posted Jun 4, 2009
CRx-401, an insulin sensitizer intended to assist metformin in type 2 diabetes therapy, has successfully completed a Phase 2 clinical trial in which patients taking it saw their fasting plasma glucose drop by 12 mg/dl after 90 days.
1 comment - Posted Jun 3, 2009
The 2009 North American Diabetes Exercise & Sports Association's North American Conference will be held June 25th to 28th at the Joseph B. Martin Conference Center at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts.
0 comments - Posted Jun 3, 2009
Novo Nordisk has announced that results from a study show that almost 60 percent of type 2 patients taking once-daily doses of its Levemir insulin analog were able to reach the average blood sugar level recommended by the American Diabetes Association.
3 comments - Posted Jun 2, 2009
The polls are open for voting for new members of the AADE board, AADE officers, and the nominating committee. The good news is that you can vote for three people! Diabetes Health wishes Board of Directors candidates and former DH Guest Editors, Jane Jeffrie Seley, Kim Higgins, and Deborah Greenwood, the best of luck.
0 comments - Posted Jun 1, 2009
As the article in this issue discusses, smoking and diabetes is a dangerous combination. Smoking is bad enough on its own. I am writing to you as a former smoker of eight years. I started smoking in France in the 1970’s in a Parisian café. I thought smoking Gauloises at the age of 15 made me sophisticated and in vogue. I imagined I looked stylish and mature like the adults I knew who smoked. Their smoking seemed to justify my habit. It never occurred to me that I was risking my health or that I was starting something that would take me years to quit.
1 comment - Posted Jun 1, 2009
May 2009
In a recent 16-week randomized, open-label pilot study, 169 patients were randomized to receive Welchol (n=57), Januvia (n=56), or Avandia (n=56).1 The results demonstrated that Welchol (colesevelam HCl) significantly improved glycemic control and reduced mean LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) when added to metformin monotherapy in patients with type 2 diabetes. In the study, Januvia® (sitagliptin) and Avandia® (rosiglitazone) also significantly improved glycemic control, but LDL-C increased in patients on both of these treatment regimens.
0 comments - Posted May 29, 2009
Researchers at Wayne State University and the University of Michigan have found that a common blood test for triglycerides may allow doctors to predict which patients with diabetes are more likely to develop neuropathy.
5 comments - Posted May 29, 2009
For generations, people have run hot and cold on the usefulness of vibrating exercise machines. There are plenty of comedy sketches in 1930s movies that portray overweight people being violently shaken around the midriff by a vibrating machine in the hope of strengthening their muscles and metabolizing fat. Those who have disdained such machines have reasoned that they substitute a mechanism's work for the work that exercisers should be doing themselves. After all, how can a machine do for you what you won't do for yourself?
2 comments - Posted May 28, 2009
United Way recently presented the 2009 United Way Spirit of America award, its highest national award, to Eli Lilly and Company. "In these challenging times, it's more important than ever to have generous partners like Lilly who are committed to strengthening our nation's communities," said Brian Gallagher, president and CEO of United Way. "Whether it's serving as a ReadUP tutor or donating life-saving medicines, Lilly and its employees understand that improving lives in this environment requires resources coupled with active and dedicated volunteers. United Way is proud to honor them with our highest national award."
0 comments - Posted May 28, 2009
A study of Merck's Januvia (sitagliptin), a drug for patients with type 2 diabetes, has found that its use can lead in some patients to a low-grade form of pancreatitis and an increased risk of pancreatic cancer in the long term. However, the study, conducted at the Larry L. Hillblom Islet Research Center at UCLA, also found that the risks associated with Januvia as a monotherapy are removed when the drug is used in conjunction with metformin (trade name Glucophage). Metformin, a low-cost drug that controls glucose production by the liver, is one of the oldest and most benign standbys in the anti-diabetes arsenal.
0 comments - Posted May 27, 2009
Wow. It's like discovering that the orchestra's second violinist, who does a good job but just isn't as glamorous as the first violinist, also has a fantastic operatic singing voice. In this case, the surprise comes from metformin, the solid performer that since the 1950s has been the first non-insulin drug that doctors prescribe to newly diagnosed type 2s.
3 comments - Posted May 27, 2009
Pump Wear has a new product called a "Draw Pak"-it's a pump pack that you can truly make your own. The pack, which is made of black cordura, has a white vinyl front that your can decorate yourself with "Sharpie" permanent markers. (Hint: Costco sells a package of every color you could possibly need.) Want to practice your picture? Use washable markers to play with your ideas, then wipe it clean until you're ready for the final design. Test your creativity and create your own sports design, fun fashion design, or special events logo-it's all up to you.
1 comment - Posted May 26, 2009
If you have type 2 diabetes, you know that regular sustained exercise is one of the best and easiest ways to manage the disease. At the same time, proper nutrition-eating low glycemic foods, avoiding carbohydrates, and taking supplements, such as vitamins and omega-3 fatty acids-is the other key to non-medicinal control of blood sugar levels.
6 comments - Posted May 26, 2009
Sometimes complex problems have simple answers. Take the alarming rise in obesity in the United States since 1970. Researchers have speculated in the past that the cause might be a combination of factors, perhaps a lack of exercise working in concert with the spread of cheap high-calorie junk food.
3 comments - Posted May 23, 2009
Doctors who treat diabetes must often feel like moms who spend 18 years reminding their kids to pick their socks up off the floor. "It just takes two seconds, and your reward is a clean room and a less grumpy mother."
1 comment - Posted May 22, 2009
On May 1, 2009, American Diabetes Wholesale paid tribute to Joyce Malaskovitz, PhD, RN, CDE, the winner of their 2nd Annual Diabetes Educator of the Year contest. They also recognized esteemed Diabetes Educator of the Year finalists Suzanne Laws, MS, RD, LD, CDE, and Laura Terrio, RN, BS, CDE.
1 comment - Posted May 22, 2009
Smoking has severe effects on your diabetes and your health. Quitting smoking will give you more energy, better control of your diabetes, and less chance of a heart attack or stroke.
5 comments - Posted May 21, 2009
My husband, Simon, was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in October 2004. It was managed via oral medication at first, but his blood sugar levels were hard to control, and his doctor prescribed insulin to stabilize his condition.
0 comments - Posted May 21, 2009
Humanin (HN) is a mitochondrial peptide* that in some research has shown the ability to protect against the death of neurons, the devastating consequence of diseases like Alzheimer's. According to the leader of a research team at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University in the Bronx, however, it also significantly improves the insulin sensitivity of diabetic rats and sharply drops their glucose levels.
2 comments - Posted May 20, 2009
Significant relief for people with type 1 diabetes could soon come in the form of a device made from a thermoplastic resin commonly used as a coating for cookware, gaskets, and hoses.
2 comments - Posted May 20, 2009
A ten-year study that tracked 652 women with type 1 diabetes found that 35 percent of them reported some sort of sexual problem, including loss of desire (57 percent of those reporting problems), problems experiencing orgasm (51 percent), pain during intercourse (21 percent), reduced arousal (38 percent), or decreased vaginal lubrication (47 percent).
3 comments - Posted May 19, 2009
The polls are open for voting for new members of the AADE board, AADE officers, and the nominating committee. Diabetes Health wishes Board of Directors candidates and former DH Guest Editors, Jane Jeffrie Seley, Kim Higgins, and Deborah Greenwood, the best of luck.
1 comment - Posted May 19, 2009
Smoking increases the harmful effects of diabetes by increasing insulin resistance and worsening diabetes control. It raises the likelihood of microvascular and macrovascular complications associated with diabetes. The risk of death from heart disease and stroke is increased, as are the possibilities of neuropathy, nephropathy, and retinopathy.
3 comments - Posted May 12, 2009
1. Don't smoke any number or any kind of cigarette. Smoking even a few cigarettes a day can hurt your health. And if you try to smoke fewer cigarettes but do not stop completely, soon you'll be smoking the same amount again.
3 comments - Posted May 12, 2009
Dear Sex & Diabetes, I have had type 1 diabetes since the age of ten. When my husband and I were first married, I had no trouble with my sex drive. After the births of our three children, however, I noticed a big decrease in desire. I have also had a hysterectomy and have gained 50 pounds since we were first married. Do you think my weight has something to do with it? I really don't feel it is fair to put my husband through my lack of desire. He still seems to want me.
2 comments - Posted May 12, 2009
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has just approved the marketing of Cycloset, a type 2 diabetes drug that works by affecting a brain chemical that helps govern metabolism. In doing so, it helps reduce the rise in blood sugar levels that typically occurs after meals. Cycloset will be offered as a monotherapy or in conjunction with sulfonylureas, metformin, or other combination type 2 drug therapies.
2 comments - Posted May 12, 2009
After American and Brazilian researchers implanted 23 newly diagnosed type 1 patients with their own adult stem cells, 12 of the patients became insulin-free for periods lasting from 14 to 52 months (the mean was 31 months).
15 comments - Posted May 12, 2009
It has been an interesting month for San Diego-based Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc., the co-manufacturer of Byetta (exenatide) with Eli Lilly & Co., and Alkermes Inc. First, the company announced that it will reduce its sales force by 35 percent-200 employees-in hope of saving $20 million this year and $45 million annually starting in 2010. The company plans to retain 325 representatives to sell its diabetes products to doctors and endocrinologists. At the same time, Amylin has petitioned the FDA to approve the marketing of Byetta LAR, a form of the type 2 drug that requires injection only once a week.
1 comment - Posted May 11, 2009
Diabetes educators and their supporters nationwide are being asked to rally behind congressional legislation that would establish a "national diabetes report card," promote better training of doctors with regard to reporting diabetes as a factor in births and deaths, and set federal standards requiring doctors to achieve a level of diabetes education before they can be licensed or certified.
7 comments - Posted May 8, 2009
Rachel Humphrey, a Manhattan Beach, CA, teenager with type 1 diabetes, was granted her biggest wish (well, almost) when she came face to face with her hero, Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers. Rachel, 13, was selected to appear on the number 1 new syndicated talk show, "The Doctors," but she had no idea that she would meet Nick Jonas on the set! The segment, titled Giving is Good Medicine, will air on Friday, May 8th.
8 comments - Posted May 8, 2009
Thanks to sponsorship from the Medtronic Foundation, the Diabetes Education and Camping Association (DECA) and the Diabetes Camp Leadership Development Council (DLEAD) are offering a diabetes retreat for young people with type 1 diabetes who are between the ages of 18 and 25. The retreat, which will take place at Villanova University from May 29th to 31st, is completely free and includes accommodations, meals, and participation in activities. All you have to provide is your own travel and incidentals. Join them for an awesome weekend!
4 comments - Posted May 8, 2009
Dental researchers are reporting that resolvins, products derived from omega-3 fatty acids, may have the ability to restore the soft tissue and even bone lost in periodontal (gum) disease.
0 comments - Posted May 7, 2009
Brave. Fight. Grandpa. Life. Alive.
Those words are some of the answers to the question "What would people living with diabetes or with somebody who has it tell you is the one word that sums up their own experience with the disease?"
3 comments - Posted May 7, 2009
The European Union's drug regulation agency has recommended that the EU approve the marketing of "Victoza" (liraglutide), a type 2 drug developed by Novo Nordisk.
2 comments - Posted May 6, 2009
"I think I'm the only blind principal in Los Angeles," stated Connie Gibson after she developed diabetic retinopathy, which later led to sudden vision loss after complications from laser surgery. Now age 59, Gibson is currently legally blind, but has been able to move forward with her life. She continues working and living an active lifestyle despite her disability.
5 comments - Posted May 6, 2009
The connection between smoking and cancer is well documented. Less well known, however, is the fact that smoking exacerbates complications for people with diabetes. Smokers with diabetes are eleven times more likely to have a heart attack or stroke than people who don't have diabetes and don't smoke.
1 comment - Posted May 5, 2009
The second annual "Caring and Sharing Weekend" was held last weekend at the Double H Ranch in Lake Luzerne, New York. The free three-day weekend, which is organized by Pump Wear Inc., offered 15 families in the diabetes community an opportunity to relax, bond, and become inspired. The families, who either recommended themselves or were recommended by someone else, enjoyed beautiful weather, horseback riding, swimming, campfires, lots of hugs, and memories.
0 comments - Posted May 5, 2009
The American Diabetes Association has released a list of "superfoods" it says "have necessary nutrients for good diabetes management, including fiber, potassium, healthy fats, magnesium and antioxidants."
22 comments - Posted May 5, 2009
Voglibose*, a generic drug often used in combination with sulfonylureas to control blood glucose levels, appears to delay or even prevent the onset of diabetes in people who are predisposed to the disease.
5 comments - Posted May 1, 2009
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) has issued a call for proposals through its national program, Project HealthDesign: Rethinking the Power and Potential of Personal Health Records. Grant recipients will work to assess and test the potential of "observations of daily living" (ODLs) to help patients and physicians better manage chronic illnesses.
0 comments - Posted May 1, 2009
April 2009
What do you eat in a 140 mile Ironman triathlon? I get that question a lot. It's been said that the Ironman race is 10% fitness, and 90% nutrition. That's a bit of an exaggeration, but for those of us with diabetes, that's our daily life. Nutrition affects everything we do. Exercise, sleep, driving a car, all of those activities require a person with diabetes to think about the carbohydrates they have consumed and when they will eat or drink them again
2 comments - Posted Apr 30, 2009
Nick Jonas, who has type 1 diabetes, and Bayer Diabetes Care are working to inspire young people with diabetes to achieve Simple Wins: small, everyday victories for managing diabetes that can lead to big differences over time. Their "Express Your Simple Win Creativity Contest" is designed to show kids that, like Nick, they don't have to let diabetes get in the way of their dreams. Nick wrote the song "A Little Bit Longer" about having diabetes, and he considers his Simple Wins to be writing lyrics, performing, and making music.
1 comment - Posted Apr 30, 2009
Experts have been warning of a worldwide outbreak of a horrific influenza ever since 1997, when the first human cases of so-called H5N1 avian influenza were reported in Hong Kong.
28 comments - Posted Apr 29, 2009
When Smiths Medical announced in late March that it was discontinuing the manufacture and sales of its Deltec Cozmo insulin pumps, the company's annual sales of that product were about $36 million. In contrast, Medtronic, manufacturer of the Minimed line of insulin pumps reported sales of $727 million in the nine months from April 2008 to January 2009.
8 comments - Posted Apr 29, 2009
Although researchers reporting the phenomenon can't quite put their fingers on how it works, a newly released study says that severe hypoglycemic episodes requiring hospitalization among older people with type 2 diabetes create a greater risk - 32 percent - for developing dementia.
1 comment - Posted Apr 29, 2009
Insulin pens have been very popular in Europe for quite some time and interest is building steadily in the United States. Many people prefer an insulin pen over the standard syringe and vial because the pens are more convenient and more accurate. Pre-filled disposable insulin pens are the easiest of all, because you don't never have to install a new cartridge when the pen is empty-you just toss it out.
3 comments - Posted Apr 28, 2009
Diabetes Health has joined the social networking sphere. Join us as a fan on Facebook, talk to us on Twitter, and subscribe to our RSS feed. Publisher and Editor-in-Chief, Nadia Al-Samarrie wants to hear your thoughts and she'll be reading what you have to say with great interest.
1 comment - Posted Apr 28, 2009
Many people with diabetes who have ditched multiple daily injections in exchange for an insulin pump regret not doing so sooner. Ask them why they didn't, and arguably the most common answer has something to do with vanity. Still, while many might feel overjoyed by their optimum blood sugar control, they're not in love with their new appendage and may struggle with self-image as a result.
1 comment - Posted Apr 25, 2009
Women hate their bodies. At least, an overwhelming collection of statistical data suggests as much. Consider the following facts compiled by Liz Dittrich, Ph.D, at About-Face.org, which aims to combat negative and distorted images of women:
0 comments - Posted Apr 24, 2009
Three studies just published in the New England Journal of Medicine have discovered that most adults have several grams of brown fat sequestered in little pockets on their necks and backs. It's a tiny amount, but it's big news because brown fat is not your everyday fat, the unwelcome white variety that stores calories and makes us hate mirrors. Brown fat is a busy little heat-producing fat that actually burns calories. It's brown because it contains special mitochondria, tiny factories within the fat cells that produce heat, lots of it, when activated by cold.
2 comments - Posted Apr 24, 2009
In an Australian study that tracked 11,140 people with diabetes, researchers found a strong relationship between the presence of atrial fibrillation-abnormal heart rhythm-and an increased risk of cardiovascular problems and death.
1 comment - Posted Apr 23, 2009
The following list shows 50 of the ways we have "convenienced" ourselves into diabesity. Before the technology boom, most Americans were active at work, at home, and at play. Much of what we did was manual, so we burned off the calories that we took in. When you consider that we did many of these activities on a regular basis, it is easy to see how we were able to remain trim. Obviously, no single one of these activities burns a large amount of calories by itself, but taken together, it is easy to see that the number of calories burned really begins to add up. (By the way, if you remember any of the things on this list, you don't have to tell anyone.)
12 comments - Posted Apr 23, 2009
Long before Joy Pape, RN, BSN, CDE, WOCN, CFCN, served a stint as the clinical editor and contributing columnist for Diabetes Health Professional, she was a seasoned diabetes expert who knew her way around almost every aspect of the disease.
0 comments - Posted Apr 22, 2009
The 18th annual Napa Valley Tour de Cure will take place this year on Sunday, May 3rd. It's the nation's largest cycling event that raises money for finding the Cure and helping people with diabetes. This year they have a special Red Rider program: If you are a cyclist with diabetes, the Tour is recognizing your "participation, spirit, struggles, courage, and discipline" by awarding special issue jerseys made for the event. (Participants must raise a minimum of $200.)
0 comments - Posted Apr 22, 2009
Well, it's official: If you're elderly and fat, you're more likely to have problems getting around than if you're thin and elderly. A new study proves it. But here's the real kicker: If you're thin and elderly, but you used to be fat, you're more likely to develop problems getting around than people who were never fat. As a matter of fact, you're almost as likely to have mobility problems as people who are fat and elderly. Apparently, you just can't win for losing.
3 comments - Posted Apr 21, 2009
Well, this is a surprise. The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act (MMA) of 2003 contains a little known section, Section 1013, that has actually led to something really useful: Up-to-date information about diabetes culled from real research and presented in language that we all can understand. Section 1013 authorizes the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to compare the effectiveness of different approaches to difficult health problems and to make that information accessible and understandable to "decisionmakers": that is, you, me, and our doctors. And diabetes is one of the difficult health problems to which the AHRQ is directing its attention.
1 comment - Posted Apr 21, 2009
The need to investigate and determine normoglycemia in Mexican children under the age of six begins with a lack of relevant published data. Another motive for reviewing the currently recommended glycemic goals for children and adolescents with type 1 stems from the well-known observation that children and adolescents who do not have type 1 do not develop microvascular diabetic complications. Today, thanks to insulin analogs and basal/bolus therapy regimens, children with type 1 have the option of achieving true euglycemia and of potentially benefiting from its advantages.
14 comments - Posted Apr 17, 2009
There is an old schoolyard chant that starts out with an image of two people "sitting in a tree" and "K-I-S-S-I-N-G." This is followed by, "First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage." The natural progression of life is to find one's "soul mate," tie the knot, and then have children.
35 comments - Posted Apr 17, 2009
Understanding which proteins help control blood glucose during and after exercise could lead to new drug therapies or more effective exercise to prevent type 2 diabetes and other health problems associated with high blood sugar.
0 comments - Posted Apr 16, 2009
Pregnant women who have gum disease run a higher risk of developing gestational diabetes than pregnant women who have healthy gums, says a study from the New York University College of Dentistry.
2 comments - Posted Apr 16, 2009
Results from DURATION-2, a 26-week test comparing the diabetic drugs Januvia, Actos, and experimental long-acting Byetta (Byetta LAR) show that Byetta produced lower A1c's and more weight loss than the other two drugs.
5 comments - Posted Apr 15, 2009
A study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism of The Endocrine Society says that low birth weight could be associated with a higher incidence of inflammation in adulthood, setting the stage for heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
1 comment - Posted Apr 15, 2009
Two-and-a-half years ago, my seven-year-old granddaughter, Liliana, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. In less than a day, I was on an airplane to Portland so that I could be there to support my daughter and son-in-law. The week that followed was a heart-wrenching experience for all of us. I stayed with Liliana as much as possible so that her parents could go through extensive education and instruction on what would be in store for them. I wanted to learn more about type 1, but I felt that there was time for that. It was more important that they became the experts, and I became the shoulder on which to lean.
2 comments - Posted Apr 14, 2009
Welcome to Diabetes Health's new column on sex and diabetes, by David Spero RN and Aisha Kassahoun. Once a month, we'll publish questions submitted by our readers, along with David and Aisha's responses. Send your questions to love@diabeteshealth.com and watch for their answers to appear in this column.
8 comments - Posted Apr 14, 2009
Has your doctor told you that you have impaired fasting glucose? That means that the glucose level in your blood, after you haven’t eaten for at least eight hours, is still higher than 100 milligrams of glucose per deciliter of blood. In other words, your blood is too sweet because your insulin is not clearing the sugar out of your blood very well. You have pre-diabetes.
0 comments - Posted Apr 10, 2009
Finally some good news!
1 comment - Posted Apr 10, 2009
Are adults with diabetes better able to manage their disease if they can schedule same- or next-day appointments to see their doctors rather than sticking to appointments made in advance? The conventional wisdom goes that if people with diabetes can more quickly get in to see their doctors whenever problems comes up, the sooner they can receive treatment for it. However, an Indiana University School of Medicine study of 4,060 adults with diabetes being treated at 12 clinics showed that open-ended scheduling produced no benefit and, when it came to blood pressure control, actually worsened patients' conditions.
3 comments - Posted Apr 9, 2009
Scientists at Jilin University in Changchun, China, have used an ancient trick, employing sugar-loving bacteria, to produce a low-sugar, low-calorie vegetable juice aimed at people with diabetes and pre-diabetes who have abnormally high blood sugar.
4 comments - Posted Apr 9, 2009
The Insight Foot Care Scale is a unique bathroom weight scale designed to help people with diabetes check their feet every day. As most people with diabetes know, daily foot observation is an important step in managing diabetes. Neuropathy, a common complication of diabetes, can cause complete loss of sensation in the extremities, which makes it possible for minor cuts and sores to go unnoticed until they are problematic.
1 comment - Posted Apr 8, 2009
Diane Helms has spent most of her life struggling with her weight. She's tried just about every diet you can name and, despite them all, has watched the pounds pile on year after year.
0 comments - Posted Apr 8, 2009
Buoyed by its recent successful phase 1 human clinical trial of a patch that delivers basal insulin through the skin, Atlanta-based Altea Therapeutics says it will work with Eli Lilly and Company and Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc., to develop a daily transdermal patch that deliver sustained levels of Byetta (exenatide). The patch, in a 12- and a 24-hour form, will use the company's proprietary PassPort Transdermal Delivery System. Lilly and Amylin will fund all development, manufacturing, and marketing activities for the product.
2 comments - Posted Apr 7, 2009
A new research report by the Pacific Research Institute (PRI) reviews three decades of the Food and Drug Administration's performance and concludes that the agency is over-funded, over-staffed, and denies hundreds of thousands of Americans timely access to new medicines. Leviathan's Drug Problem: The Federal Monopoly of Pharmaceutical Regulation and Its Deadly Cost was authored by John R. Graham, Director of Health Care Studies at PRI.
5 comments - Posted Apr 7, 2009
A 12-month university study of 130 persons who ate either a USDA food pyramid-inspired high-carb diet or a diet moderately high in protein showed that members of the higher protein group lost 23 percent more weight and 38 percent more body fat than their high carb counterparts.
0 comments - Posted Apr 3, 2009
The majority of U.S. adults are worried about being able to afford medical care and prescription medications.1 In addition, a recent study reveals that one in seven children and working-age Americans went without needed prescription medications in 2007 due to cost concerns, up from one in 10 in 2003. Experts predict these statistics are likely to get worse in 2009, and this could present even greater hardships for those Americans with chronic conditions such as diabetes.2
3 comments - Posted Apr 3, 2009
Last week we published an article about how the CDC says too many people are still smoking. The federal government has a Healthy People 2010 goal of reducing adult smoking rates to 12 percent or less by 2010. Of the 50 states, only Utah has thus far achieved that goal.
1 comment - Posted Apr 2, 2009
Being overweight is something all doctors and most laypeople know significantly increases the risk of acquiring type 2 diabetes. In fact, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) says that more than 90 percent of people who are newly diagnosed with type 2 are overweight. But why does excess fat increase the risk of diabetes? Isn't the disease, after all, one that involves the body's inability to metabolize glucose?
3 comments - Posted Apr 2, 2009
University of Cambridge researchers are reporting that people with type 2 diabetes who maintain strict control of their blood sugar-defined as lowering their A1c levels by 0.9% over a five-year period-can lower their risk of non-fatal heart attacks by 17 percent.
0 comments - Posted Apr 1, 2009
My whole childhood, I was a bit of a pudgy girl. At the age of eight, I weighed over 110 pounds, wore a woman's size 8, and stood a mere five feet tall. I wasn't grossly obese, by any means, but it was enough to keep me off the cheerleading squad and out of the popular crowd at school. I didn't really have any health issues besides the weight.