Periodontal Disease Linked With Diabetes And Heart Health

Periodontal Disease Linked with Diabetes and Heart Health

Forty-seven percent of adults age 30 years and older have some form of periodontal disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control. In individuals 65 years and older, the number jumps to a staggering 70.1 percent. Periodontal disease creates a heightened systemic response linked with heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and several other disorders. Nutrient deficiencies like magnesium and coenzyme Q10 magnify its devastating effects. Periodontal disease doesn’t have to happen. Learn about its effects, risks, and natural ways to combat this disorder that affects millions.
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Periodontal Disease: Signs and Risk Factors
Periodontal disease is the result of inflammation and infections of the gums and bone that surround the teeth. Gingivitis is an early stage of this inflammation. When it progresses, it becomes periodontitis. Gums pull away from the tooth, low-grade infections simmer, the jaw bone breaks down, and teeth may loosen or even fall out.
Warning signs of periodontitis include bad breath or bad taste in the mouth that doesn’t go away; red, swollen gums; bleeding gums; sore, sensitive, or loose teeth; pain with chewing; and even changes in your bite.
Common risk factors identified include poor oral hygiene, smoking, crooked teeth, immune deficiencies, defective fillings in teeth, poorly fitting dentures, and even hormone changes related to pregnancy, menopause, or oral contraceptives. Additional factors include e-cigarettes, sleep disorders and insufficient sleep and obesity. Dental cavities are preventable and so is periodontal diseas Continue reading

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8 Best Fruits for a Diabetes-Friendly Diet

1 / 9 What Fruit Is Good for High Blood Sugar?
When you're looking for a diabetes-friendly treat that can help keep your blood sugar within a healthy range, look no farther than the produce drawer of your refrigerator or the fruit basket on your kitchen table.
Believe it or not, the notion that fruit is not safe when you need to watch your A1C is a popular diabetes myth that has been debunked again and again. Indeed, according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), many types of fruit are loaded with good-for-you vitamins and minerals, as well as fiber — a powerful nutrient that can help regulate blood sugar levels and decrease your risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Fiber — which can also be found in some of the best vegetables for diabetes, as well as whole grains — can further benefit your health because it promotes feelings of fullness, curbing unhealthy cravings and overeating, research shows. Healthy weight maintenance can increase your insulin sensitivity and help in your diabetes management.
So, how do you pick the best fruit for diabetes? While some forms of fruit, like juice, can be bad for diabetes, whole fruits like berries, citrus, apricots, and yes, even apples — can be good for your A1C and overall health, fighting inflammation, normalizing your blood pressure, and more.
But as with any food in your diabetes diet, you have to be smart about counting carbohydrates and tracking what you eat. Portion size is key.
Consume fruit in its whole, natural form, and avoid syrups or any processed f Continue reading

Why Ebola is capitalized but diabetes isn’t

Ebola and West Nile virus are capitalized. But why? Not every disease is. Here’s a quick explanation, drawn from style guides and assorted other readings:
Diseases named after regions are capitalized.
Ebola is the name of a river in Zaire, and it was near the Ebola River that the virus first caused disease in humans. Thus, the disease became known as the Ebola virus.
West Nile in West Nile virus is capitalized for a similar reason: It was first found in a patient in the West Nile district of northern Uganda.
Diseases named after people are capitalized.
Some disease names are capitalized because they are named after the person who discovered them. For example, Alzheimer’s disease is named after a German doctor named Alois Alzheimer, and Down’s syndrome is named after a British doctor named John Langdon Down.
Should disease names have apostrophes? Alzheimer’s disease versus Alzheimer disease?
Somewhat peripheral to our capitalization question: When people start considering disease names, they often wonder why some have apostrophes and some don’t, and why you sometimes see the same name written with and without an apostrophe.
You sometimes see disease names such as Alzheimer (without the apostrophe) because there is a movement to omit the apostrophe from names based on the discovering physician. Some patient advocacy groups have lobbied that the apostrophe implies the disease belongs to the physician and that such names are inappropriate.
On the other hand, the argument that an apostrophe means the doctors own the disease is linguistically simplistic, and the sentime Continue reading

Take Care of Your Diabetes During Sick Days & Special Times

Diabetes is part of your life. You can learn how to take care of yourself and your diabetes when you’re sick, when you’re at school or work, when you’re away from home, when an emergency or a natural disaster happens, or when you’re thinking about having a baby or are pregnant.
When You’re Sick
Having a cold, the flu, or an infection can raise your blood glucose levels. Being sick puts stress on your body. Your body releases hormones to deal with the stress and to fight the sickness. Higher hormone levels can also cause high blood glucose levels. You should have a plan for managing your diabetes when you’re sick. The first step is to talk with your health care team and write down
how often to check your blood glucose levels
whether you should check for ketones in your blood or urine
whether you should change your usual dose of your diabetes medicines
what to eat and drink
when to call your doctor
Action Steps
If You Take Insulin
Take your insulin, even if you are sick and have been throwing up.
Ask your health care team about how to adjust your insulin dose based on your blood glucose test results.
Action Steps
If You Don't Take Insulin
Take your diabetes medicines, even if you are sick and have been throwing up.
People who are sick sometimes feel as though they can’t eat as much or can’t keep food down, which can cause low blood glucose levels. Consuming carbohydrate-rich drinks or snacks can help prevent low blood glucose.
If you are sick, your health care team may recommend the following:
Check your blood glucose levels at least four times a day and write Continue reading

Diabetes And Renal Failure: Everything You Need To Know

Unfortunately, renal failure or nephropathy (commonly referred to as kidney failure) and unmanaged diabetes go hand in hand. In addition, 50 percent of people with diabetes will experience some form of kidney damage in their lifetime, even if they never experience kidney failure or end up on dialysis.
In this article, we will look at how renal failure and insufficiency can have an impact on people with diabetes, and how people with diabetes can avoid renal failure and dialysis. We will look at risk factors, causes, and symptoms, as we explore the relationship between renal failure, diabetes, and high blood glucose.
We will also look at what happens to a person with diabetes when their kidneys fail. We will discuss dialysis and kidney transplantation.
First, let’s see what Lydia had to say when she contacted TheDiabetesCouncil.
Lydia’s story
Lydia had received a laboratory result from her doctor that was very alarming to her. She had an excess amount of protein in her urine, usually an early sign of kidney damage. He informed Lydia that her kidneys were being affected by her diabetes, and she needed to work on self-managing her diabetes. He ordered some more tests to further look at her kidneys.
Was Lydia headed to the kidney dialysis center? Her friend Tracey, whom she’d met in a diabetes support group had been the first person she knew who was on dialysis. Tracey seemed to have a very difficult life in and out of the dialysis center. Lydia was afraid to end up like Tracey.
Lydia knew that she hadn’t been efficiently self-managing her diabetes. Her A1C had been grea Continue reading