Type 2 Diabetes May Be Bad For Brain Health

Type 2 Diabetes May Be Bad for Brain Health

Excess weight appears to amplify the threat, study says
HealthDay Reporter
THURSDAY, April 27, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Previous research has linked type 2 diabetes and memory loss. Now, new research may be closing in on some of the reasons why.
The study found that people with type 2 diabetes -- particularly those who are overweight or obese -- have thinner gray matter in several areas of the brain.
These brain regions are related to memory, executive function, movement generation and visual information processing, said the study's senior author, Dr. In Kyoon Lyoo. He's director of the Ewha University Brain Institute in Seoul, South Korea.
"Obesity leads to increased risk of type 2 diabetes, metabolic dysfunction and is also associated with brain alterations independently," Lyoo said. "We aimed to investigate whether overweight/obesity influenced brain structure and cognitive function in individuals with early stage of type 2 diabetes."
The study included: 50 overweight or obese people with type 2 diabetes; 50 normal-weight people with type 2 diabetes, and 50 normal-weight people without diabetes.
The Korean study volunteers were between 30 and 60 years old. Those with diabetes had it for five years or less, and they were attempting lifestyle modifications and/or taking oral medication to lower blood sugar levels. No one was taking insulin.
The normal-weight group with type 2 diabetes had slightly better blood sugar control -- a hemoglobin A1C level of 7 percent. The overweight folks with type 2 diabetes had hemoglobin A1C levels of 7.3 percent.
Hemoglobin A1C is a two- to Continue reading

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Understanding Diabetes: Life with a Chronic Illness

You wake up, and the first thing you think about is diabetes because you have to check your blood sugar … and kind of know where to start your day.
She was sitting in her kitchen, chatting over FaceTime as if a friend had just dropped by for a visit. It was Sunday night, and Meagan Sheikh and her husband were enjoying a few quiet hours after their young son went to sleep.
A hardworking wife and mother with a love for nursing, Meagan was diagnosed with Type I diabetes at the age of 26. Over time, Meagan has learned to balance her family, work life, and fluctuating blood sugar, all while sharing her experiences with others in her blog.
Meagan is one of approximately 29.1 million Americans currently living with a form of diabetes. Just like Meagan, every person has a unique experience with this complex disease.
The World Health Organization recently published the Global Report on Diabetes to address the rising prevalence of diabetes across the globe. From 1980 until 2014, the number of people living with some form of diabetes nearly quadrupled from 108 million to 422 million. 1 in 20 people worldwide already have some form of diabetes, and those numbers are expected to climb rapidly. If current trends for Type II diabetes continue, 1 in 3 US citizens will be diagnosed in their lifetime.
What is diabetes?
The World Health Organization (WHO) describes diabetes as a “chronic, progressive disease characterized by elevated levels of blood glucose.” If that definition sounds broad to you, that’s because it is. Diabetes is a general term for a family of diseases that occur fo Continue reading

Being Overweight Changes Your DNA, Increasing Risk Of Diabetes For Offspring

Epigenetics is the study of how our behaviors and experiences can actually change our DNA, allowing us to pass on new traits to future generations. Recently, researchers revealed that obesity is able to cause epigenetic changes to our DNA which could have adverse health consequences for our future offspring.
In what is being called the biggest study yet on the effect of body mass index (BMI) on DNA, researchers uncovered that significant changes were found in the expression of genes responsible for lipid metabolism and substrate transport and in gene loci related to inflammation in the DNA of individuals with high BMIs. Ultimately, the team was able to identify epigenetic markers that could predict the risk of type 2 diabetes.
Read: Genetics Is Not As Cut-And-Dry As We Once Thought, Thanks To Epigenetics
"Our results allow new insights into which signaling pathways are influenced by obesity", said Christian Gieger, a researcher involved in the study, in a recent statement. "We hope that this will lead to new strategies for predicting and possibly preventing type 2 diabetes and other consequences of being overweight."
For the study, the team looked at blood samples of over 10,000 women and men from Europe. A large proportion of these were inhabitants of London of Indian ancestry, who are genetically at high risk for obesity and metabolic diseases. In 5,387 samples the research team identified 207 gene loci that were epigenetically altered dependent on the BMI. They then tested these candidate loci in blood samples of an additional 4,874 subjects and were able to confirm 187 Continue reading

Do you have pre-diabetes?

Two million Australians currently have pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes is on the verge of becoming an epidemic.
So whether you personally struggle with pre-diabetes, or you have a family history of diabetes, there are ways you can help improve your insulin sensitivity naturally – as this article from Authority Nutrition explains.
Insulin is an essential hormone that controls your blood sugar levels.
It’s made in your pancreas and helps move sugar from your blood into your cells for storage. When cells are insulin resistant, they can’t use insulin effectively, leaving your blood sugar high.
When your pancreas senses high blood sugar, it makes more insulin to overcome the resistance and reduce your blood sugar.
Over time, this can deplete the pancreas of insulin-producing cells, which is common in type 2 diabetes. Also, prolonged high blood sugar can damage nerves and organs.
You’re most at risk of insulin resistance if you have prediabetes or a family history of type 2 diabetes, as well as if you are overweight or obese.
Insulin sensitivity refers to how responsive your cells are to insulin. Improving it can help you reduce insulin resistance and the risk of many diseases, including diabetes.
Here are 14 natural, science-backed ways to boost your insulin sensitivity.
1. Get More Sleep
A good night’s sleep is important for your health.
In contrast, a lack of sleep can be harmful and increase your risk of infections, heart disease and type 2 diabetes (1, 2).
Several studies have also linked poor sleep to reduced insulin sensitivity (3, 4).
For example, one study in Continue reading

3 Generations Of Type 1 Diabetes, One Shared Struggle

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is a chronic, life-threatening disease that can strike anyone at any age and at any time. It occurs when the body's immune system attacks and destroys the cells in the pancreas that make insulin. T1D can be passed on genetically, but can also affect those without a hereditary link. Although most people are diagnosed as children, it is not just a child's disease, and in fact, 20 per cent of people with T1D are diagnosed as adults.
Each day, 50 people across the country are diagnosed with T1D. More than 300,000 Canadians currently suffer from the disease.
Below are accounts from three individuals who are challenged on a daily basis by a disease that preoccupies their thoughts 24/7.
(Photo: JRDF)
Kenadie, 11, from Toronto, ON
When I was first diagnosed, I had no idea what was happening. I was at the theatre with my mom and had to go to the bathroom many times, which was not normal. My mom has T1D and after using her blood glucose tester, it showed that I likely had the disease. After visiting my doctor, it was confirmed.
I was scared at the beginning, but I felt better after I was taught how to manage my diabetes. Every day, I check my blood sugar level seven or more times, and my mom checks three times during the night. Afterwards, I have to either eat specific foods or give myself an insulin injection. I used to have around nine needles per day, but now I have an insulin pump which is easier and less painful.
When I'm at school playing at recess, I sometimes have to go inside because my blood sugar levels are too high or too low, or someone needs to cha Continue reading