Weight Loss Really Can Reverse Diabetes, New Study Finds

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Type 2 diabetes is a chronic condition that affects 422 million people worldwide. For decades, doctors have treated it with medications designed to keep blood sugar levels down.
But in a paper published in the Lancet, researchers in the UK describe a landmark study in which people with diabetes went into remission—just by losing weight.
Nearly half of people in the study who were given a six-month diet plan and lost an average of 30 pounds went into remission and no longer had diabetes. None took any medications during that time to control their disease and relied on weight loss alone.
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Type 2 diabetes is caused by the body’s in ability to break down sugars from the diet. Normally, cells in the pancreas work to release insulin, a hormone that can process sugar and either send it to cells that need it for energy or store it as fat for future energy needs. Cells in the liver are responsible for clearing insulin from the circulation. But excess fat in the pancreas and liver can start to shut down these insulin-producing cells, leading to spikes in blood sugar levels. Diabetes medications can bring sugar levels down but do not address the compromised insulin machinery.
In the study, Dr. Roy Taylor, professor of medicine and metabolism at Newcastle University, and his colleagues randomly assigned nearly 300 people to either a weight management program or their usual treatments, including diabetes medications. Continue reading

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A wealthier India sees alarming rise in adolescent diabetes

New Delhi: Rohin Sarin is midway through his 9th grade geography class when he starts feeling light-headed and dizzy, a sign that his blood sugar levels are dipping. He quietly removes his insulin pen from his school bag, gives himself one of four daily jabs and takes a bite of an energy bar.
The 15-year-old’s classmates in New Delhi have seen the ritual so often they are no longer curious. Rohin is one of a growing number of Indians with diabetes, the disease increasingly afflicting children and adolescents in the fast-growing South Asian country.
More than two decades of rapid economic growth has changed Indians’ lifestyles. People eat out more often, and prefer Western-style junk food such as burgers and pizza over traditional lentil and vegetable meals. They are also more sedentary, using cars and public transportation instead of walking or riding bicycles, and entertaining themselves with television.
The changes have brought a sharp rise in obesity, along with lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, even as India still has some of the world’s worst levels of malnourishment and stunted childhood growth due to a paucity of food.
“Over the last 20 years, we are seeing a huge explosion ... mainly because of increasing childhood obesity,” said Dr Monica Arora, a specialist with the Public Health Foundation of India.
Nearly 30% of India’s teenagers are obese, nearly twice the number in 2010, according to health ministry statistics.
to spotty pubIndia has 70 million diabetics, though it has no data on how many are children and likely has millions more cases that have Continue reading

Truly Dreadful Things That Diabetes Does to Your Body

Our bodies are amazing creations. However, it can be easy to take your body for granted, and fail to take a moment to marvel at what it can do. That is, until you are diagnosed with a disease that affects how well your body works. One such disease is diabetes. Without the proper medical attention, you can experience major health problems.
This disease can result in complications with your major organs and reduce your quality of life, according to the experts at the U.S. National Library of Medicine’s MedlinePlus. If diabetes starts to get out of control, you could experience several health complications. Here are some truly horrible things that diabetes does to your body.
1. Gangrene
Gangrene is a condition that occurs when your body tissue dies as a result of poor blood flow to a certain area. Your fingers, toes, and limbs are the most common areas to be affected by gangrene. However, Mayo Clinic says your internal organs and muscles can also be affected. If you have diabetes, you have an increased risk of developing gangrene. This is because diabetes can damage your blood vessels and hamper blood flow, a risk factor for gangrene.
2. Nerve damage
Diabetics are in danger of developing nerve damage, which is also called neuropathy. Consequently, if you have diabetes and nerve damage, you might experience tingling, pain, or weakness in your extremities, especially your feet. Neuropathy could also cause diabetics to experience reduced feelings of pain, heat, and cold in their feet. This is why it is important for diabetics to get regular check-ups at their podiatrist’s off Continue reading

Breakfast ideas for people with type 2 diabetes

Sugary cereals, bagels covered in cream cheese, and high-fat bacon breakfasts are the subjects of many food fantasies. However, they are all poor choices for people with diabetes.
Diabetes management requires attention to sugar and carbohydrates. To optimize heart health, people with diabetes should also steer clear of high-fat foods that have little nutritional value.
This does not mean that people with diabetes have to have dull breakfasts. A number of classic breakfasts are excellent choices. A few minor tweaks to traditional breakfasts can make many of them healthful even for people with type 2 diabetes.
Classic breakfasts for type 2 diabetes
Breakfasts high in fiber, but low in added sugar, carbohydrates, and salt are excellent choices for people with diabetes. Nutrient-dense foods support feelings of fullness, which can help stop people snacking on unhealthful options.
Some healthful breakfast options include the following:
Smoothies
Fruit juices contain rapidly absorbed sugar and, sometimes, artificial sweeteners that can either trigger blood sugar spikes or affect insulin sensitivity and gut bacteria. Smoothies offer the same sweet taste as juice but contain lots of nutrients that help fight hunger.
There are many ways to include different nutrients in a smoothie. Load up on fiber by using spinach, kale, or avocado in a smoothie. Layer on sweetness by adding frozen berries, bananas, apples, or peaches.
Make sure to include some fat or protein to make the smoothie as filling as possible. This will also slow down the digestion of the carbohydrates.
Adding a scoop of a Continue reading

Does the Ketogenic Diet Work for Type 2 Diabetes?

You’ve probably seen dozens of headlines about the ketogenic diet by now, which has made its way into popular culture largely by celebrities and supermodels giving the long-standing fad diet a repeated stamp of approval. Is this the diet to follow if you have diabetes? Studies suggest the answer isn’t so simple. Some science shows its meal plan may be helpful, while other research, like one study published in September 2016 in Nutrients, highlights the importance of whole grains in the diets of people with diabetes — a restricted food category in the ketogenic diet.
While the keto diet can offer many potential benefits for diabetes management, following it requires pretty serious commitment. So take a beat before you take the plunge — and consider these questions that can help you and your medical team determine if it’s right for you:
How Does the Ketogenic Diet Work Exactly?
There’s a good reason the ketogenic diet is also referred to as a low-carb, high-fat diet. Indeed, following the ketogenic diet means reducing carbohydrate intake to typically less than 50 grams (g) of carbohydrates per day, while increasing fat and protein intake, according to a review published in August 2013 in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
To put that into perspective, an individual on an average, non-restricted diet can easily eat more carbohydrates than that in one typical meal — for instance, a turkey, cheese, and veggie sandwich on whole-grain bread with a small, 1 ounce (oz) bag of classic potato chips would come in at around 51 g of carbs. These dietary changes dri Continue reading