The Role Of Melatonin In The Onset And Progression Of Type 3 Diabetes

The role of melatonin in the onset and progression of type 3 diabetes

The role of melatonin in the onset and progression of type 3 diabetes
Alzheimers disease (AD) is defined by the excessive accumulation of toxic peptides, such as beta amyloid (A) plaques and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles (NFT). The risk factors associated with AD include genetic mutations, aging, insulin resistance, and oxidative stress. To date, several studies that have demonstrated an association between AD and diabetes have revealed that the common risk factors include insulin resistance, sleep disturbances, blood brain barrier (BBB) disruption, and altered glucose homeostasis. Many researchers have discovered that there are mechanisms common to both diabetes and AD. AD that results from insulin resistance in the brain is termed type 3 diabetes. Melatonin synthesized by the pineal gland is known to contribute to circadian rhythms, insulin resistance, protection of the BBB, and cell survival mechanisms. Here, we review the relationship between melatonin and type 3 diabetes, and suggest that melatonin might regulate the risk factors for type 3 diabetes. We suggest that melatonin is crucial for attenuating the onset of type 3 diabetes by intervening in A accumulation, insulin resistance, glucose metabolism, and BBB permeability.
MelatoninType 3 diabetesAlzheimers disease (AD)Insulin resistanceHyperglycemiaBlood brain barrier (BBB)Beta amyloid (A)
Alzheimers disease (AD) is an age-related neurodegenerative disorder that is characterized by the abnormal aggregation and accumulation of toxic peptides resulting in beta amyloid (A) plaques and intracellular neurofi Continue reading

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Do artifical sweeteners affect diabetes?

Artificial sweeteners or sugar substitutes are synthetic chemicals that offer the sweetness of sugar to your food without adding calories. Though, generally thought as safe or even healthy, consumption of these food additives for long period of time is found associated with weight gain, impaired glucose tolerance and development of type 2 diabetes.
In diabetes, people suffer from abnormal blood sugar control due to lack of insulin and/or insulin resistance. As, artificial sweeteners dont affect blood sugar levels, these are considered free foods (with < 20 calories or < 5 gm of carbohydrates) on a diabetes exchange and considered safe alternatives to table sugar for diabetics.
Foods made with artificial sweeteners are marketed as light, low calorie, low carb, sugar free, diet foods or health foods. Though, substituting sugar-sweetened foods with artificially sweetened ones may look like a healthy choice, these products have their downsides too, especially when these are consumed regularly and in large amounts, to shed weight and prevent long-term chronic diseases like diabetes.
As more and more people are eating and drinking sugar-free foods and beverages (such as diet soft drinks, non-carbonated soft drinks, baked goods, frozen desserts, candy, light yogurt, chewing gum) and using sugar substitutes in cooking and baking, following are the main concerns about long-term safety of consuming artificially sweetened food products:
Research suggest that there is a rebound effect, where people misperceive sugar-free foods as healthy and consume more of an unhealthy type of f Continue reading

5 Things to Expect If You Have Gestational Diabetes

5 Things to Expect If You Have Gestational Diabetes
Pre-pregnancy I ran, lifted weights and maintained a healthy weight, so I didn't anticipate any physical problems or complications once I got pregnant. Fast forward a few months later and a diagnosis of gestational diabetes plunged me into an unfamiliar world. One of monitoring blood sugar levels, planning meals, writing down everything I ate and meeting with a diabetes counselor. At first it was scary, but armed with the knowledge my doctors gave me, I got through it.
So if you're scared going in for the glucose test or if you've just been diagnosed, I'm going to pass on the knowledge that helped me survive pregnancy with gestational diabetes:
First, a diagnosis of gestational diabetes isnt the same as Type I or Type II diabetes. Unlike Type I and Type II, gestational diabetes develops during pregnancy and resolves itself afterwards. In the rare cases that it doesnt go away, the mom likely had undiagnosed Type I or Type II diabetes pre-pregnancy.
Babies born to mothers who either didn't receive treatment or didn't follow their doctor's guidelines have the risk of being born with "birth trauma, shoulder dystocia (shoulders impacted at delivery), high birth weight and in serious casesin-utero fetal death," says OB-GYN, Dr. Alixandra Creapeau. The good news is that so much is known about gestational diabetes and how to treat it that if you do follow your Doctor's orders the risks drop significantly.
2. You won't necessarily have to give yourself insulin shots
When youre diagnosed with diabetes, your mind may immedia Continue reading

Girls with early first periods become women with greater risk of gestational diabetes

Girls with early first periods become women with greater risk of gestational diabetes
In Western societies, average age of first period has dropped from 17 to 13 years over the past century. justanotherhuman/flickr , CC BY-NC-SA
Girls with early first periods become women with greater risk of gestational diabetes
Professor of Life Course Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland
The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
As a young girl, getting your period for the first time is a big deal. It comes with mental and social expectations around becoming a woman and a host of cultural practices that act to celebrate or stigmatise menstruation.
But evidence now suggests the timing of this event could also have health implications for girls who get their first period earlier than their peers.
During puberty our bodies change and sexually mature, and a girls first period is an important point in this process. The age when girls get their first period varies, however younger than 12 years is generally considered to be early. The possibility that a first period before the age of 12 is linked with pregnancy health was explored in our recent study . We found that girls who had early first periods were more likely to develop diabetes when they later became pregnant as an adult.
Gestational diabetes is a serious pregnancy complication , as it increases the risk of pre-term labour Continue reading

Mass. General Hospital launches phase II trial of BCG vaccine to reverse type 1 diabetes

Mass. General Hospital launches phase II trial of BCG vaccine to reverse type 1 diabetes
FDA approval of trial testing generic vaccine announced at ADA Scientific Sessions
A phase II clinical trial testing the ability of the generic vaccine bacillus Calmette-Gurin (BCG) to reverse advanced type 1 diabetes has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The approval of this trial, which will shortly begin enrolling qualified patients, was announced today at the 75th Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) by Denise Faustman, MD, PhD, director of the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Immunobiology Laboratory and principal investigator of the study.
The five-year trial will investigate whether repeat BCG vaccination can clinically improve type 1 diabetes in adults between 18 and 60 years of age who have small but still detectable levels of insulin secretion from the pancreas. Faustmans research team was the first group to document reversal of advanced type 1 diabetes in mice and subsequently completed a successful phase I human clinical trial of BCG vaccination. She announced the FDA approval to launch the phase II trial during her ADA presentation, Low Levels of C-Peptide Have Clinical Significance for Established Type 1 Diabetes.
We have learned a lot since the early studies in mice not just about how BCG works but also about its potential therapeutic benefits, similar to what are being seen in trials against other autoimmune diseases, says Faustman. We are so grateful to all of the donors, large and small, who have ma Continue reading