Type 2 Diabetes Early Warning Signs

Although 24 million people have been diagnosed with diabetes, it's estimated that an additional 5.7 million people have the disease but don't know it. Diabetes mellitus refers to a group of diseases that affect how your body uses blood sugar (glucose).
Glucose is vital to your health because it's an important source of energy for the cells that make up your muscles and tissues. It's also your brain's main source of fuel.
If you have diabetes, no matter what type, it means you have too much glucose in your blood, although the causes may differ. Too much glucose can lead to serious health problems.
Chronic diabetes conditions include type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Potentially reversible diabetes conditions include prediabetes—when your blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be classified as diabetes—and gestational diabetes, which occurs during pregnancy but may resolve after the baby is delivered.
Complications
Long-term complications of diabetes develop gradually. The longer you have diabetes—and the less controlled your blood sugar—the higher the risk of complications. Eventually, diabetes complications may be disabling or even life-threatening.
Possible complications include cardiovascular disease, nerve damage (neuropathy), kidney damage (nephropathy), eye damage (retinopathy), foot damage, skin conditions, and hearing impairment.
Type 2 diabetes may also increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease. The poorer your blood sugar control, the greater the risk appears to be. Although there are theories as to how these disorders might be Continue reading

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Living with Type 2 Diabetes: 20 Inspirational Blogs

When thinking of diabetes what is the first thing that comes to your mind? Insulin? Injections? Of course, these things are very important – for type 1 diabetics. However, almost 90% of all diabetics have type 2 and mostly don’t need to inject insulin. But nevertheless, having type 2 diabetes can change your life completely and you need to take good care of your health. In the UK there are more than 135 and in the US more than 1400 diabetes-related amputations – every week.
But the good news is: it doesn’t need to get that far. With the right treatment and responsible behavior, you can do a lot to prevent the progress of your diabetes. And you’re not alone: There are a lot of bloggers providing insight into their lives with type 2 diabetes, sharing their experience and motivation. How do I keep my blood glucose levels stable? What is the right diet for me? And is there an app that supports me with my diabetes? We’ve collected 20 of the most inspiring blogs about type 2 diabetes that you need to read:
Are you missing one of your favorite blogs? Please write us in the comment section below.
Diabetes Ramblings
Sue writes about her personal experiences with type 2 diabetes and how she is dealing with her life as a mom of five. She says about herself: “I may have type 2 diabetes but it doesn't have me!”
diabetesramblings.com
Diabetes Stops Here
On this blog, run by the American Diabetes Association, people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes share their stories about “what it means to live with diabetes, from frustrations and fears to friendships and triumphs”.
d Continue reading

Diet and Diabetes: Recipes for Success

Diabetes Basics
In the past few years, much of what we thought we knew about diabetes has been turned on its head. New understanding of the nutritional causes of diabetes gives us the power to keep it from occurring or to turn it around.
Here is what is supposed to happen: Our bodies turn starchy and sweet foods into glucose for our muscle cells to use for fuel. Insulin, a hormone made in the pancreas, ushers glucose into the cells. People with type 2 diabetes, the most common type, generally have enough insulin. However, their cells become resistant to it, leaving too much glucose in the bloodstream, where it can cause problems.
Over the short run, people with uncontrolled diabetes may feel tired, thirsty, urinate frequently, and notice blurred vision. In the long run, they are at risk for heart disease, kidney problems, vision loss, nerve damage, and other difficulties.
Dietary Approaches to Diabetes
Diabetes diets typically call for portion control, carbohydrate limits, and, for those who are overweight, calorie restrictions. Fortunately, there is another way. Low-fat, plant-based diets are ideal for diabetes and the conditions associated with it, such as heart disease, weight gain, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure. And they offer the advantage of not requiring any weighing or measuring of portions. Going hungry is not necessary!
The old approach recommended cutting down on carbohydrates. It’s true that overly processed carbohydrates—those made with sugar or white flour, for example—are poor choices. However, delicious unprocessed or minimally processed fo Continue reading

Intermittent fasting could help tackle diabetes – here’s the science

INDYPULSE
Intermittent fasting could help tackle diabetes – here’s the science
Intermittent fasting is currently all the rage. But don’t be fooled: it’s much more than just the latest fad. Recent studies of this kind of fasting – with restricted eating part of the time, but not all of the time – have produced a number of successes, but the latest involving diabetes might be the most impressive yet.
The idea of intermittent fasting arose after scientists were impressed by the effects of constant calorie restriction. A number of studies in many different animals have shown that restricted eating throughout adulthood leads to dramatic improvements in lifespan and general health.
The reasons for these improvements aren’t yet clear. Part of it seems to be that going without food gives cells in the body a much needed break to perform maintenance and repair. But the lack of food also forces cells to resort to alternative sources of energy. Some of these, such as ketones – molecules created in the liver from recycled fat – appear to be beneficial.
The problem is that constant calorie restriction isn’t practical: it’s easy for scientists to impose upon lab animals, but hard for humans to impose upon themselves in the real world. Fortunately, we’ve learnt that constant calorie restriction isn’t really necessary. Intermittent fasting seems to have many of the same benefits.
There are two main types of intermittent fasting. One type, known as “time restricted feeding”, requires eating only during a few hours of the day – say between 10am and 6pm. This ap Continue reading

Recommendations for Management of Diabetes During Ramadan

Since our last publication about diabetes and fasting during Ramadan (1), we have received many inquires and comments concerning important issues that were not discussed in the previous document, including the voluntary 1- to 2-day fasts per week that many Muslims practice throughout the year, as well as the effect of prolonged fasting (more than 18 h a day) in regions far from the equator during Ramadan when it occurs in summer—a phenomenon expected to affect millions worldwide for the next 10–15 years. Since 2005, there have been substantial additions to the literature, including two studies examining the effect of structured education and support for safe fasting, both of which had promising results (2,3). In addition, new medications, such as the incretin-based therapies, have been introduced with less risk for hypoglycemia.
According to a 2009 demographic study, Islam has 1.57 billion adherents, making up 23% of the world population of 6.8 billion, and is growing by ∼3% per year (4). Fasting during Ramadan, a holy month of Islam, is a duty for all healthy adult Muslims. The high global prevalence of type 2 diabetes—6.6% among adults age 20–79 years (5)—coupled with the results of the population-based Epidemiology of Diabetes and Ramadan 1422/2001 (EPIDIAR) study, which demonstrated among 12,243 people with diabetes from 13 Islamic countries that ∼43% of patients with type 1 diabetes and ∼79% of patients with type 2 diabetes fast during Ramadan (6), lead to the estimate that worldwide more than 50 million people with diabetes fast during Ramadan.
Ramadan Continue reading