Study Finds No Link Between Baby Formula Made From Cow's Milk And Diabetes Risk

Could babies be at higher risk of developing Type 1 diabetes from drinking formula made from cow's milk? That idea has been circulating for some time but the evidence has been scant and contradictory. A study published Tuesday makes it seem less likely.
There are two types of diabetes, and both are on the rise. It's clear that a major driving force behind the increase of Type 2 diabetes, which mainly affects adults, is the eating habits that are also driving the rise of obesity.
A much bigger mystery is what has been propelling the increase of Type 1 diabetes (once called juvenile diabetes). This disease usually strikes children and takes hold when a child's immune system starts attacking cells in the pancreas that produce insulin.
Researchers in Finland have been trying to tease apart the role of cow's milk for many years. In 2010 they published some intriguing results. They looked at antibodies that appear to be part of the Type 1 diabetes process. Studying 230 infants, they found these antibodies were more common in babies who consumed formula produced from cow's milk, compared with babies who were fed a formula in which those milk proteins had been broken down.
The results from that small study only suggested that whole proteins from cow's milk are triggering the immune reaction that leads to type 1 diabetes. But if that proved to be the case, there would be an easy way to reduce the risk of the disease: simply make sure baby formula was based on degraded milk proteins rather than whole proteins.
To find out whether that would indeed work, the scientists devised a very Continue reading

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I Have Type 2 Diabetes and Here’s What I Eat to Live Better

Managing type 2 diabetes requires a careful combination of lifestyle factors, such as regular exercise, losing weight, and taking the proper medication. But, perhaps the most important step in fighting this disease is taking control of what you eat regularly.
After all, your diet not only affects your body weight—obesity is the main cause of developing type 2 diabetes—but it also impacts your blood sugar levels, which is essential to managing this metabolic disease. Eating the right foods will help to prevent blood sugar spikes (and dips) and keep your body weight in a healthy range.
Luckily, you can help control your diabetes by adopting a healthier lifestyle and making better food choices. Diabetes patient Seavey Bowdoin, 49, was able to put his diabetes in remission by changing what he eats. After Bowdoin completed the Why WAIT (Weight Achievement and Intensive Treatment) program, a 12-week intensive program focused on weight control and diabetes management, he has adopted healthier food habits. He revealed to Eat This, Not That! what he eats on a daily basis, including meals and snacks, and how he maintains his blood sugar and weight.
To review just how well Bowdoin’s diet can help to curb his diabetes symptoms and to identify any room for improvement, we reached out to a Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE) and Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), Erin Spitzberg, who is the program manager at Fit4D, for her expert verdict for each meal and snack Seavey eats. Bowdoin and Spitzberg’s tips, along with the 26 Best and Worst Foods for Diabetics, can help you take c Continue reading

Proposed fee schedule details Diabetes Prevention Program payments

The 2018 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule proposed rule recently issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) includes proposals to boost coverage of diabetes prevention and telehealth services.
The CMS proposal includes “a number of positive changes that could improve patient care and save taxpayer dollars,” according to the AMA. Chief among these are a plan for expanding the Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP), and new possibilities for telehealth services.
“The annual physician fee schedule update is a chance for CMS to modify Medicare policy to ensure the best possible treatment options for patients,” said AMA President David O. Barbe, MD (@DBarbe_MD). “The AMA is encouraged by many of the proposed changes and applauds the administration for working with the AMA to address physician concerns.”
Sept. 11 is the deadline to submit comments on the document’s proposed Medicare payment rules and policies—which includes an overall positive payment-rate update of 0.31 percent.
Diabetes Prevention Program setup
Included in the proposed rule are steps that would further implement a Medicare DPP, which the CMS describes as a structured intervention aimed at preventing a progression from prediabetes to type 2 diabetes in at-risk individuals. Previous research has shown that evidence-based lifestyle changes resulting in modest weight loss can sharply cut the rate at which people with prediabetes go on to develop type 2 diabetes.
In a news release, the AMA said it “commends” CMS for going forward to expand coverage of the DPP model the Ass Continue reading

Workplace bullying associated with a higher risk of diabetes, says study

Being the victim of bullying or violence in the workplace could mean your risk of developing type 2 diabetes is up to 46 per cent higher, a study has said.
Around nine per cent of participants reported they had been bullied in the past year, and this group was more likely to develop diabetes later in life.
New research says bullying is a “severe social stressor”, and this has an impact on metabolism, appetite and weight in various ways that make diabetes more likely.
Understanding the wider health impacts of workplace stress is particularly important as a report earlier this year showed a third of UK workers are experiencing anxiety, depression or stress.
The study was led by researchers at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark and followed the health of 46,000 people aged 45 to 60 who were not initially diabetic.
Nine per cent reported bullying in the past year around 12 per cent said they experienced violence or threats, typically from people outside their organisation like customers or patients.
Bullying included a range of “unkind or negative behaviour from colleagues”, unfair criticism, humiliating work tasks and also feelings of isolation.
In follow-ups with these participants 1,223 went on to develop type 2 diabetes – this was a 46 per cent higher likelihood than the general population.
The study controlled for other factors that could impact diabetes risk, but statisticians said this “can never be perfect” so it was important to note this was one association in a complex field.
The study, published in the journal Diabetologia, pulled data from severa Continue reading

Diabetes Insipidus

Recently, @EMHighAK (Alex Koyfman) asked about any “teaching points” with respect to Pediatric DKA and Cerebral Edema. In addition to referencing an oldie, but a goodie morsel on Cerebral Edema, I also mentioned that we should all be careful not to attribute all ketonuria in vomiting kids to “starvation ketosis.” That got me to thinking about other potential diabetes related urine pitfalls. What about the child with polyuria but no glucosuria? Is that reassuring and do I quickly assume that the child is just super-hydrated? Let us take a minute to recall that there is another diabetes to consider: Diabetes Insipidus.
“Diabetes,” etymologically, has origins in words that mean “to pass through” and was used to describe excessive passage of urine (polyuria).
“Mellitus” has origins from words that mean honey and/or sweetness.
“Insipidus” stems from words that meant lacking flavor or taste.
So to differentiate between the two, all we have to do is taste the urine. Simple.
This was how physicians of antiquity would evaluate the urine. (Delicious!)
Ok… I don’t advise this… and I’m pretty sure there are some hospital regulations that make that practice a reason to terminate your employment.
I am glad we have replaced human tongues with urine dipsticks for this!
Diabetes Insipidus = the inability to concentrate urine
Can be due to:
Central CNS process – vasopressin deficiency
Any process that impairs production and release of vasopressin can lead to diabetes insipidus. [Dabrowski, 2016]
Central Diabetes Insipidus (DI) is more common than Nephrogenic Continue reading