Statins Increase The Risk Of Developing Diabetes In At-risk People

Statins increase the risk of developing diabetes in at-risk people

Among susceptible individuals, statins — which are a common cholesterol-lowering medication — could increase the risk of type 2 diabetes by 30 percent. These new findings are sure to reignite debate.
Statins lower cholesterol by reducing its production in the liver. They do this by blocking an enzyme called hydroxy-methyl-glutaryl-coenzyme A reductase, which is involved in its manufacture.
Statins are one of the most widely prescribed types of drug in the United States.
Between 2011 and 2012, over a quarter of U.S. adults over the age of 40 were taking cholesterol-lowering medication. The vast majority of these drugs were statins.
Alongside their cholesterol-lowering ability, statins also have positive effects on inflammation and oxidative stress. Taken together, it would be unsurprising if statins helped to reduce the risk of developing diabetes.
But the reverse may well be true. Evidence is mounting that long-term statin use could increase the risk of type 2 diabetes. The first study to mention this potential effect was published in 2008.
Between then and now, many meta-analyses have been carried out. Some have added evidence supporting a link between statin use and type 2 diabetes, while others have brought such a link into question. Therefore, a definitive answer is yet to be found.
Reopening the statin-diabetes debate
Many previous studies that pointed out a link did not specifically set out to investigate diabetes and statins; their prime focus was on cardiovascular events. Because the number of diabetes cases within the experimental groups was low, it was difficu Continue reading

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A plant-based diet for the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes

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Abstract
The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is rising worldwide, especially in older adults. Diet and lifestyle, particularly plant-based diets, are effective tools for type 2 diabetes prevention and management. Plant-based diets are eating patterns that emphasize legumes, whole grains, vegetables, fruits, nuts, and seeds and discourage most or all animal products. Cohort studies strongly support the role of plant-based diets, and food and nutrient components of plant-based diets, in reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes. Evidence from observational and interventional studies demonstrates the benefits of plant-based diets in treating type 2 diabetes and reducing key diabetes-related macrovascular and microvascular complications. Optimal macronutrient ratios for preventing and treating type 2 diabetes are controversial; the focus should instead be on eating patterns and actual foods. However, the evidence does suggest that the type and source of carbohydrate (unrefined versus refined), fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated versus saturated and trans), and protein (plant versus animal) play a major role in the prevention and management of type 2 diabetes. Multiple potential mechanisms underlie the benefits of a plant-based diet in ameliorating insulin resistance, including promotion of a healthy body weight, increases in fiber and phytonutrients, food-microbiome interactions, and decreases in saturated fat, advanced glycation endproducts, nitrosamines, and heme iron.
Keywords: Diabetes mellitus, Insulin resistance, Vegan, Vegetarian
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1. Introduction
Type 2 diab Continue reading

Type 2 Diabetes Reversal — The Quick Start Guide

Type 2 Diabetes Reversal — The Quick Start Guide
How to Reverse Type 2 Diabetes — The Quick Start Guide
Twenty years ago, when you bought a brand sparkly new VCR machine, you would also get a thick instruction manual. Read this thoroughly before you start, the manufacturer would implore. There would be detailed setup procedures and troubleshooting guides.
Most of us ignored the manual, just plugged it in and tried to figure out the rest. That’s why we all had the blinking 12:00 on. Today, most new electronics now come with a quick start guide which has the most basic 4 or 5 steps to get your machine working and then anything else you needed, you could reference the detailed instruction manual. Instruction manuals are just so much more useful this way.
Well, I don’t know much about VCRs, but I do know about type 2 diabetes. I could write an entire book about obesity (oh, wait, I did that already), or fasting (oh, wait, done too) or type 2 diabetes (next up for 2018). But many of you will not want to go through the entire instruction manual. So this is your quick start guide for reversing your type 2 diabetes.
A Fully Reversible Disease
Most doctors, dietitians and diabetes specialists claim that type 2 diabetes is a chronic and progressive disease. The American Diabetes Association, for example, almost proudly proclaims this on its website. Once you get the diagnosis, it’s a life sentence. But, it’s actually a great big lie. Type 2 diabetes is almost always reversible and this is almost ridiculously easy to prove. This is great news for the more than 50% of Ameri Continue reading

Obesity exacerbates type 2 diabetes-related brain abnormalities

People with type 2 diabetes who are overweight or obese are more likely to have exacerbated and progressive abnormalities in the structure of their brains and cognition, find researchers.
The new research was the result of a collaboration between Dr. Sunjung Yoon and Dr. In Kyoon Lyoo, both of the Ewha Brain Institute at the Ewha Womans University in Seoul, South Korea, and Hanbyul Cho, of The Brain Institute at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. Their findings were published in Diabetologia.
Evidence suggests that type 2 diabetes and obesity independently have adverse effects on many organs, including the brain.
For example, type 2 diabetes is known to be associated with the progression of cognitive dysfunction and may amplify the risk of developing dementia. Scientists suggest that metabolic dysfunctions such as insulin resistance, inflammation, and poor sugar level control may all play a role in the brain alterations linked with type 2 diabetes, although exactly how this happens is not yet fully understood.
Obesity can potentially pave the way for the development of further conditions, and it is connected with a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Moreover, obesity has a relationship with metabolic dysfunction and may worsen the metabolic abnormalities that are associated with type 2 diabetes. Furthermore, the metabolic dysfunction that is linked to obesity may be responsible for brain alterations and cognitive impairment, regardless of the presence of type 2 diabetes.
Previous studies have found independent links between obesity and type 2 diabetes and ch Continue reading

Top 3 Diabetes Myths, Busted: Fruit, Starchy Vegetables, and Blood Glucose

Almost 10 percent of Americans have diabetes and that number is growing. Unfortunately, the myths surrounding diabetes are as widespread as the disorder itself. Here we debunk the most common diabetes myths.
For the past 50 years, people diagnosed with all forms of diabetes have been advised to eat low-carb diets high in fat and protein, and to avoid eating high-carbohydrate foods like fruits, potatoes, squash, corn, beans, lentils, and whole grains.
Despite this popular opinion, more than 85 years of scientific research clearly demonstrates that a low-fat, plant-based whole foods diet is the single most effective dietary approach for managing type 1 and type 2 diabetes. This means that a low-fat diet—not a low-carb diet—has been shown across the board to minimize oral medication and insulin use, stabilize blood glucose, and dramatically reduce long-term disease risk in people with diabetes.
Myth #1: You Develop Type 2 Diabetes From Eating Too Much Sugar
Eating sweets is not a direct cause of type 2 diabetes. People develop type 2 diabetes over time by slowly developing a resistance to insulin, the hormone that escorts glucose out of your blood and into tissues like your muscle and liver. I like to think of type 2 diabetes as a very advanced form of insulin resistance in which glucose remains trapped in your blood because your body cannot use insulin properly. In this way, elevated blood glucose is a symptom of diabetes, and NOT the root cause.
The real cause of insulin resistance is dietary fat. We discussed it at length in this article. People with both type 1 and typ Continue reading