Type 2 Diabetes - New Way To Control Blood Sugar Could Get Rid Of Painful Monitoring

Type 2 diabetes - new way to control blood sugar could get rid of painful monitoring

A new app called Epic Health could monitor glucose levels in healthy and type 2 diabetic patients is just as accurate as traditional, invasive methods that use the finger prick test to draw blood.
Type 2 diabetes cause blood sugar levels to rise, but it must be monitored to prevent people experiencing hyperglycaemia.
The app, which works by the user place a fingertip over the camera lens of their smartphone, has held its first few weeks of pre-clinical trials in Hereford.
The trials are being held to ensure that the app can accurately measure glucose when compared to methods when blood is drawn.
Epic Health was created to help those who suffer from diabetes or even those who are pre-diabetic, by making readings easier.
It was also designed to make blood glucose monitoring less intrusive and more engaging, encouraging users to understand how certain foods affect their body.
Every week 4,500 people are diagnosed with diabetes across the UK, but thousands more are unaware they are at risk.
With current finger-prick tests, a user may have to stab their fingers up to 3,000 times a year.
A pre clinical trial looked at 79 subjects with diagnosed type 2 diabetes, including undiagnosed borderline type 2, and healthy glucose levels took part in the data collection study.
The results showed that 90.58 per cent pairs of results were in the no risk zone and 8.88 per cent of pairs were in the ‘slight lower’ area giving a combined 99.4 per cent safe clinical error result.
The results unequivocally show that a mobile phone application can accurately estimate blood glucose levels of hea Continue reading

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Fact check: If diabetes were a country how big would it be?

Federal Assistant Minister for Health Ken Wyatt claims diabetes is a growing and global issue.
"If I could just give you one stat: if diabetes was a country it would be the fifth largest country in the world. That's how many people across the globe are affected and so there is much work we've got to do," he said on ABC TV's Q&A on October 12.
So just how many people around the world have diabetes?
ABC Fact Check takes a look.
Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs when the pancreas can no longer produce enough insulin or when the body is unable to make good use of insulin.
The resulting high blood glucose levels cause damage in other organs and lead to heart attacks, strokes, blindness, kidney damage and amputations.
In Australia, 1.176 million people are registered with the National Diabetes Services Scheme, which helps people with diabetes manage their condition.
Diabetes Australia, a non-profit organisation that works to reduce the impact of the disease, estimates that another 500,000 Australians have diabetes but have not been diagnosed.
According to the not-for-profit International Diabetes Federation (IDF), there were 387 million people with diabetes in the world in 2013.
Its figure was arrived at by searching for country prevalence studies in the PubMed, Medline and Google Scholar databases, as well as reviewing national health surveys from governments and non-government organisations from January 1980 to April 2013.
When no studies were available for a particular country, studies from similar countries in the region, with similar wealth and ethnicity, were used.
Continue reading

Diabetes Has Become One of the Most Expensive and Lethal Diseases in the World

Recent research shows life expectancy has declined in the U.S. for the first time in two decades. A follow-up study suggests type 2 diabetes is a factor in this declining life expectancy
About half of all American adults are either pre-diabetic or diabetic. Between 1990 and 2013, diabetes rates rose by 71 percent in the U.S.
While death certificates suggest diabetes is involved in about 3.5 percent of deaths in the U.S., the real number is likely around 12 percent; among the obese it may be 19 percent, suggesting diabetes may be the third leading cause of death
By Dr. Mercola
Late last year, research1,2,3 showed life expectancy has declined in the U.S. for the first time in two decades, leaving researchers searching for clues as to the cause.
While drug overdoses appear to have contributed to the decline, obesity also plays a major role. Now, a follow-up study4 suggests type 2 diabetes is a major factor. As reported by Vox:5
"[R]esearchers have long known that diabetes is an underreported cause of death on death certificates, the primary data source for determining life expectancy trends.
That's because people with diabetes often have multiple health conditions, or "comorbidities," such as cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity and even cancer …
[According to] Andrew Stokes, assistant professor of global health at Boston University's School of Public Health … '[T]o some extent, deaths that should be attributed to diabetes go to other causes.'"
Indeed, the links between diabetes and other lethal conditions such as heart disease and cancer Continue reading

Diabetes and eye disease: How diabetes affects vision and eye health

One of the complications associated with diabetes is eye disease. Diabetes can wreak havoc on your vision and eye health, in some cases leading to vision loss. If you have diabetes, it’s important that you keep your condition well managed. If you don’t, you should take the necessary preventative measures to reduce your risk and protect your vision along with overall health.
Regardless of the type, diabetics have a 25 percent higher risk of vision loss, compared to the general population without diabetes. In diabetes, your body cannot store sugar properly. This fluctuation in blood sugar levels can damage your blood vessels, especially those that supply blood to your eyes. As a result, diabetes means an increased risk for eye complications, including cataracts, glaucoma, and diabetic retinopathy.
Diabetes-related eye diseases
Diabetic retinopathy: High blood sugar levels can damage blood vessels. Too much sugar can also cause blockages to the blood vessels in the retina, obstructing the flow of oxygenated blood. The new blood vessels that are being produced do not develop properly, so they leak.
There are two types of diabetic retinopathy: early diabetic retinopathy and advanced diabetic retinopathy.
Early diabetic retinopathy: In this form of diabetic retinopathy, new blood vessels are not produced. The walls of the blood vessels going to the retina become weak and tiny bulges begin to protrude. This can cause blood and fluid to leak into the retina. Large blood vessels can also assume an irregular diameter, and more blood vessels become blocked.
Nerve fibers in the ret Continue reading

Diabetes and mood swings: Effects on relationships

Diabetes is a condition that impacts the way a person's body uses sugar for energy. However, diabetes affects much more than blood sugar. It can impact nearly every body system and have an effect on a person's mood.
Stress associated with managing diabetes as well as concerns about potential side effects can all contribute to changes in mood. In addition, the actual highs and lows of blood sugar levels may also cause nervousness, anxiety, and confusion.
It is important for people to recognize their own individual symptoms of high or low blood sugar. They must also ensure they seek support for any concerning mental health symptoms they might experience.
Watching these mood swings can often be difficult for friends and family to understand. However, learning why a person may experience mood changes related to diabetes and being supportive can help to promote a stronger, healthier relationship.
Contents of this article:
How do diabetes and mood swings go together?
Diabetes can have many effects on a person's mood. For example, managing diabetes can be stressful. A person may be constantly worried about their blood sugar and whether it is too high or too low.
Adjustments to their diet and constantly checking their blood sugar can also add to a person's stress and enjoyment of life. As a result, they are more likely to experience feelings of anxiety and depression.
Blood sugar swings can cause rapid changes in a person's mood, such as making them sad and irritable. This is especially true during hypoglycemic episodes, where blood sugar levels dip lower than 70 milligrams per dec Continue reading