3 Reasons It’s Harder For People With Type 2 Diabetes To Lose Weight

Approximately 90% of people with type 2 diabetes are overweight or obese.1 While obesity often contributes to the development of diabetes, the bigger driver of weight gain is the high insulin levels that are found well before the diagnosis of diabetes.
There are some good reasons why the standard advice of “eat less, exercise more” doesn’t deliver results for people living with type 2 diabetes.
Reason #1: With type 2 diabetes, insulin is high, and insulin is a fat-storage hormone2
Everyone has glucose, a type of sugar, in their blood at all times. Glucose is a source of energy that largely comes from eating carbohydrates. Simply put, when you eat carbohydrates, your blood sugar rises.
Insulin is produced by your pancreas, and insulin has many functions in the body. One of insulin’s functions is to help get glucose out of the blood and into cells where it can be used. In order to do this, insulin rises along with glucose. So when you eat carbohydrates and glucose rises, the insulin is rising as well. Once in the cells, glucose is mostly used for energy. If you have type 2 diabetes, this process doesn’t work well anymore: your body has become resistant to the signal of insulin, so the insulin isn’t as effective at moving the glucose out of your blood. That’s how you end up with high blood sugar levels after eating carbohydrates. Having chronically elevated blood sugar levels is dangerous, so your body needs to do something about it.
Your body responds by making more and more insulin to try to get the job done. Recall now that insulin has many functions, not just Continue reading

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Lunch ideas for people with type 2 diabetes

Diabetes is a progressive disease with many potential complications. These include blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, stroke, and loss of toes, feet, or legs.
Roughly 1 in every 11 people in the United States currently has diabetes, but although the condition may be familiar, it is hardly harmless. It is the country's seventh leading cause of death, and people with diabetes have a 50 percent higher risk of death than those without the condition.
Fortunately, even though diabetes is a chronic disease, it can be managed. One way that complications can be prevented is by following dietary guidelines.
Classic lunch ingredients that are good for people with diabetes
With planning and conscious eating, people with diabetes can safely enjoy a satisfying and varied diet.
The following common lunch items can also be part of a healthful lunch for people with diabetes:
canned tuna or salmon
hard-boiled eggs
salads with dressing on the side
low-salt soups and chili
whole fruit, such as apples and berries
cottage cheese
plain, unsweetened Greek yogurt
peanut or almond butter
Lunch ideas
People who need to control their blood sugar can still select from a wide variety of options when they are looking for a tasty lunch. The following lunch ideas provide about 3 servings of carbohydrates each, or about 45 grams (g), or less:
soup and salad, such as tomato soup with a kale-apple salad
whole-wheat wrap (tortilla = 30 g carbs or less), such as turkey with hummus, cucumber, tomatoes, feta cheese, and olives
spinach salad with canned tuna, ½ mayonnaise, ½ Greek yogurt, celery, and lemo Continue reading

High fibre diet 'could prevent type 1 diabetes'

Scientists have raised hope for the prevention of early-onset diabetes in children after a fibre-rich diet was found to protect animals from the disease.
More than 20 million people worldwide are affected by type 1 diabetes, which takes hold when the immune system turns on the body and destroys pancreatic cells that make the hormone insulin.
It is unclear what causes the immune system to malfunction, but patients are usually diagnosed with type 1 diabetes before the age of 14 and must have daily shots of insulin to control their blood sugar levels.
Working with Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, researchers at Monash University in Melbourne created a diet rich in fibre that is broken down in the lower intestine into molecules known as short-chain fatty acids.
The team, led by immunologist Charles Mackay, believe that short-chain fatty acids called butyrate and acetate dampen down the immune system, and have the potential to treat a range of disorders from asthma to irritable bowel syndrome.
For the latest study, the scientists monitored the health of mice that were bred to develop the rodent equivalent of type 1 diabetes. On a normal diet, more than 70% of the animals had developed the condition after 30 weeks. But another group that received the high fibre diet was nearly entirely protected from the condition.
“What we saw was dramatic,” Mackay said. “When we give the diet to mice that spontaneously develop type 1 diabetes, we could almost completely eliminate their disease.”
Mackay said it was too early to know whether such “medicinal foods” could p Continue reading

Differences in incidence of diabetic retinopathy between type 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus: a nine-year follow-up study

It is estimated that more than 200 million people worldwide currently have diabetes and that number is predicted to rise by over 120% by 2025.1 It has become a chronic disease with several complications. Diabetes mellitus (DM) is classified as type 1 diabetes (T1DM) or type 2 diabetes (T2DM), gestational diabetes, monogenic diabetes and secondary diabetes.2 There is a current trend towards more children developing T1DM and more than half a million children are estimated to be living with the disease.
The most important ocular complication is diabetic retinopathy (DR), a common cause of blindness in Europe.3 Development of DR is similar in both DM types. DR screening uses a non-mydriatic fundus camera, a cost-effective way of screening DM populations.4 Screening frequency varies according to DM type.5 Our group rolled out a screening programme in 2000 that included general practitioners and endocrinologists,6 and we reported an increase in the incidence of DR in a previously published study.7
In this study, we determine the incidence of any-DR, sight-threatening retinopathy (STDR) and diabetic macular oedema (DMO) in patients with T1DM and its differences in patients with T2DM.
Materials and methods
Setting: The reference population in our area is 247 174. The total number of patients with DM registered with our healthcare area is 17 792 (7.1%).
Design: A prospective, population-based study, conducted from 1 January 2007 to 31 December 2015. A total of 366 patients with T1DM and 15 030 with T2DM were screened.
Power of the study: Our epidemiologist estimates the detection of Continue reading

4 Best Yoga Poses To Keep Diabetes Under Control [With Pictures Inside]

Regularly practising yoga in addition to eating healthily and other healthy lifestyle habits can help diabetics and pre-diabetics manage their blood sugar levels.[1]
The best yoga for beginners with diabetes includes postures and breathing exercises that are designed specifically to target and stimulate the pancreas. By improving blood flow to the pancreas, yoga postures for diabetes rejuvenate the organ’s cells and improve its ability to produce insulin for the body.
How can yoga benefit people with diabetes?
Regular yoga training helps in improving mental and physical health. Practicing the various yoga asanas helps the body’s endocrine system and each organ at the cellular level. In fact, yoga postures that help in relaxation, stretch the pancreas. This can stimulate the production of insulin-producing beta cells and also promote to balance weight and mental attitude.
Here are our expert tips for people with diabetes on how to exercise safely.
Yoga poses for diabetes
Nishrin Parikh, GNC Expert, Founder of the “Yoga Strength” and the oldest female to contest the Asian Bodybuilding Championships, explains four yoga poses that have been found to be especially beneficial for diabetics:
Pose #1: Bhujangasana or Cobra Pose
Bhujangasana is particularly beneficial for people with diabetes and one of the primary poses for diabetes.
Benefits of Bhujangasana:
Increases flexibility
Improves respiratory and digestive processes
Strengthens the back muscles
Eases the strain and pain after long working hours
How to do Bhujangasana:
To start the pose, lie on your stomach and plac Continue reading