Diabetes Can Lead To Hypoglycaemia - Know The Symptoms And Act Promptly

Diabetes can lead to hypoglycaemia - know the symptoms and act promptly

By Dr V Mohan
Among the various complications arising out of diabetes, the country sees more than 1 million cases per year of severe 'hypoglycaemia' commonly known as 'low blood sugar'. Ill-managed diabetes is the primary cause of this complication that can be identified by the following symptoms: confusion, heart palpitations, shakiness and anxiety. A sweet snack comes in handy for its quick management.
When the blood glucose levels fall, the body usually puts out the above signs and symptoms that one is running low on energy and needs a sugary snack. It is very important that a 'hypo' episode is treated quickly. If it is left untreated, the blood glucose level continues to fall and the person could become unconscious or can have a convulsion (fit) associated with low blood sugar levels. In severe circumstances, hypoglycaemia can be (albeit rarely) fatal.
Hypoglycaemia is defined as blood glucose levels below 70 mg/dl with symptoms and below 60 mg/dl even without symptoms. The common symptoms of hypoglycaemia include weakness, drowsiness, confusion, hunger, dizziness or light-headedness, sleepiness, paleness, headache, irritability, trembling, nervousness, sweating, rapid heartbeat, and a cold, clammy feeling.
According to the Hypoglycaemia Assessment Tool (HAT) study, the incidence of hypoglycaemia is considerable across the world and people with type 2 diabetes may experience up to 19 episodes in a single year. It is suggested that hypoglycaemia is an underestimated cause for death and cardiovascular disease in people with diabetes but few studies have been conducted in Continue reading

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Cancer, diabetes and heart disease diet: Is THIS the healthiest way to eat your eggs?

Heart disease, cancer and diabetes risk could be cut by losing weight
Risk reduced by avoiding inflammatory foods
Eggs are the most nutritious foods you can eat
Poached and hard boiled eggs had the fewest calories
Heart disease, cancer and diabetes risk could be reduced by maintaining a healthy weight and reducing inflammation - and eating enough eggs in your diet could be the key.
Despite being vilified in past decades as a cholesterol and salmonella risk, they are now a go-to brunch option thanks to their range of health benefits.
Rob Hobson, Healthspan’s head of nutrition and author of The Detox Kitchen Bible, pointed out that eggs are one of the most nutritious foods you can eat.
“As well as being rich in protein, they are one of the only foods to contain vitamin D, and are a source of nearly every vitamin and mineral you need,” he explained.
“Additionally, eggs contain the antioxidants choline and beta carotene which both reduce damage caused by free radicals and help to lower inflammation in the body.”
If you are watching your weight, poaching and hard boiling are going to contain fewer calories and fat compared to scrambled or fried
From poached to hard boiled and scrambled to fried, what form are eggs best consumed in?
“They are great served any which way,” explained Hobson.
“But if you are watching your weight, poaching and hard boiling are going to contain fewer calories and fat compared to scrambled or fried which are often cooked using oils, butter and cream.”
Jeraldine Curran, The Food Nutritionist (thefoodnutritionist.co.uk), also suggested c Continue reading

Mayo Clinic Minute: Is Alzheimer’s Type 3 diabetes?

Are some cases of Alzheimer's disease triggered by a form of diabetes in the brain? Perhaps they are, according to researchers. Mayo Clinic's campuses in Rochester, Minnesota, and Jacksonville, Florida, recently participated in a multi-institution clinical study, testing whether a new insulin nasal spray can improve Alzheimer’s symptoms.
“This study has furthered our understanding of the gene that is the strongest genetic risk factor known for Alzheimer’s disease,” says Dr. Guojun Bu, a Mayo Clinic neuroscientist. "About 20 percent of the human population carries this riskier form of [the gene] APOE, called the E4," says Dr. Bu. It's believed that more than 50 percent of Alzheimer’s cases can be linked to APOE4, according to the study, which was published in Neuron.
Watch: The Mayo Clinic Minute
Journalists: A broadcast-quality video pkg (1:00) is in the downloads. Read the script.
It's an accepted fact that people with Type 2 diabetes have a higher risk of Alzheimer's disease. One reason may be reduced blood flow to the brain because of damaged blood vessels, Dr. Bu explains. "And, therefore, the supply of essential nutrients to the brain is also impaired."
Dr. Bu has found genetics may also be to blame. A variant of the so-called Alzheimer’s gene, APOE4, seems to interfere with brain cells' ability to use insulin, which may eventually cause the cells to starve and die. Unofficially, it's called Type 3 diabetes. "What it refers [to] is that their brain's insulin utilization or signaling is not functioning. Their risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease is about Continue reading

Relative contribution of type 1 and type 2 diabetes loci to the genetic etiology of adult-onset, non-insulin-requiring autoimmune diabetes

Abstract
In adulthood, autoimmune diabetes can present as non-insulin-requiring diabetes, termed as ‘latent autoimmune diabetes in adults’ (LADA). In this study, we investigated established type 1 diabetes (T1D) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) genetic loci in a large cohort of LADA cases to assess where LADA is situated relative to these two well-characterized, classic forms of diabetes.
We tested the association of T1D and T2D GWAS-implicated loci in 978 LADA cases and 1057 non-diabetic controls of European ancestry using a linear mixed model. We then compared the associations of T1D and T2D loci between LADA and T1D and T2D cases, respectively. We quantified the difference in genetic risk between each given disease at each locus, and also calculated genetic risk scores to quantify how genetic liability to T1D and T2D distinguished LADA cases from controls.
Overall, our results showed that LADA is genetically more similar to T1D, with the exception of an association at the T2D HNF1A locus. Several T1D loci were associated with LADA, including the major histocompatibility complex region, as well as at PTPN22, SH2B3, and INS. Contrary to previous studies, the key T2D risk allele at TCF7L2 (rs7903146-T) had a significantly lower frequency in LADA cases, suggesting that this locus does not play a role in LADA etiology. When constrained on antibody status, the similarity between LADA and T1D became more apparent; however, the HNF1A and TCF7L2 observations persisted.
LADA is genetically closer to T1D than T2D, although the genetic load of T1D risk alleles is less than childhood-on Continue reading

Is Alzheimer’s Type 3 Diabetes?

Is someone you love suffering from Alzheimer’s disease? If so, you know how devastating this tragic disease is—not only for the people who suffer from it, but for their friends and families as well. That’s why we fear it even more than cancer, heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, or stroke. But here’s something you might not know. Increasingly, scientists are calling Alzheimer’s disease by another name: Type 3 diabetes.
The scientist who coined this term—Suzanne de la Monte, a neuropathologist at Brown University—discovered that rats with insulin resistance (the forerunner of diabetes) “developed an Alzheimer-like disease pattern, including neurodegeneration.” Dr. de la Monte says that Alzheimer’s has “virtually all of the features of diabetes, but is largely confined to the brain.”
Dr. de la Monte’s findings are consistent with the fact that diabetics have a much higher rate of Alzheimer’s disease than non-diabetics. They’re also in line with research showing that people with high blood glucose levels are at elevated risk for dementia even if they don’t have diabetes.
Recent studies are shedding still more light on the connection between Alzheimer’s and insulin resistance or diabetes. For example:
A 2017 study found that the fluctuations in fasting plasma glucose and HbA1c (a long-term blood glucose measurement) that are common in diabetics are independently associated with a higher risk for Alzheimer’s disease.
A 2016 study of patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) concluded that Type 2 diabetes “may accelerate cognition deteriorati Continue reading