WHO: Diabetes Cases In Adults Quadrupled Since 1980

WHO: Diabetes cases in adults quadrupled since 1980

The World Health Organization released its first global report on diabetes on Wednesday, a day before World Health Day. The agency warned that if left unchecked, the disease could soon be one of the top causes of death worldwide.
"Globally, an estimated 422 million adults were living with diabetes in 2014, compared to 108 million in 1980," the UN agency said, warning that the condition had worsened due to worldwide changes "in the way people eat, move and live."
According to WHO, the disease directly caused 1.5 million deaths in 2012 - the latest year available for global figures - but high blood-glucose levels related to diabetes caused an additional 2.2 deaths that year.
The report states that, given the current upward trend, diabetes could become one of the top seven causes of death worldwide by 2030, or even earlier.
Asian regions most affected
The Western Pacific region - which includes China and Japan - was the worst region to be affected with 131 million estimated cases in 2014. The heavily-populated Southeast Asia region - including Indonesia and India - was the second-most affected, with 96 million cases.
Europe and the Americas came in third and fourth on the list, with 64 million and 62 million respective cases.
"Over the past decade, diabetes prevalence has risen faster in low- and middle-income countries than in high-income countries," the report stated. Dr. Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General said the data shows diabetes is "no longer a disease of predominantly rich nations."
"If we are to make any headway in halting the rise in diabetes, we need to rethink ou Continue reading

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Whole Milk And Full-Fat Dairy May Help You Maintain Weight, Reduce Diabetes Risk

Poor nutrition is a cause of poor health. While many of us are aware of this fact and want to eat right and improve our health, we sometimes feel confused by the often contradictory messages and scientific findings appearing in the daily news. Tufts University delivered one such surprise this week, turning the tables on low-fat food advocates.
People who eat full-fat dairy products are less likely to develop diabetes than those who grimly consume low-fat (and low-pleasure) dairy alternatives, say the Tufts researchers.
Led by Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, the research team looked at circulating blood biomarkers and 15 years of data for 3,333 adults participating in the Nurses’ Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-up Study. The team discovered participants with the highest levels of dairy fat in their blood had up to 46 percent lower risk of developing diabetes over the 15-year span compared to those who had the lowest levels of dairy fats in their blood.
“There is no prospective human evidence that people who eat low-fat dairy do better than people who eat whole-fat dairy,” Mozaffarian told Time Magazine. Apparently, skim milk is not the hero we once believed.
Fat, Carbs, Sugar
“Fat gives things flavor,” Julia Child famously said. Anyone doubting the truth of her assertion need only taste, side by side, skim and full-fat milk or low-fat and full-fat yogurt. Taste buds (and Child) never lie.
Yet, full-fat dairy products contain more calories than lower fat dairy products and many people want to avoid putting on the extra pounds — one of many risk factors for d Continue reading

Full-fat milk may protect from diabetes, study finds

Skim milk is widely thought to be the best choice for those aiming to lose weight and be healthier, but a new study found that people who consumed full-fat dairy had a lower risk of diabetes, compared to those who did not.
Researchers from Tufts University and Harvard University studied circulating blood biomarkers and 15 years of data for 3,333 adults participating in the Nurses’ Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. They observed that those with the highest levels of dairy fat in their blood had a 46 percent lower risk of developing diabetes over the study span, compared to those who had the lowest levels of dairy fats in their blood, Medical Daily reported.
“I think these findings together with those from other studies do call for a change in the policy of recommending only low-fat dairy products,” study author Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian told Time. “There is no prospective human evidence that people who eat low-fat dairy do better than people who eat whole-fat dairy.”
While many people shifted from regular dairy to skim in order to avoid the calories from full-fat dairy, past research has shown a tendency to replace fat with sugar or carbohydrates— two culprits that are even worse for diabetes risk. Three years ago, Swedish researchers observed that middle-aged men who ate high-fat dairy products were significantly less likely to become obese over 12 years, compared to men who never or rarely ate such foods, Medical Daily reported.
Mozaffarian noted that results are preliminary and should not yet be taken as diet advice.
The study was published Continue reading

Managing Diabetes: Six Healthy Steps with the Most Benefit

Want to boost your overall health with diabetes? A Johns Hopkins expert offers healthy strategies to help you control your blood sugar, protect your heart, and more.
Want more information, support, and advice about practical, everyday ways to stay healthy with diabetes? Ask your doctor about a diabetes self-management class near you. In a 2011 study from The Johns Hopkins University, people who took diabetes-education classes saw their A1C reduced by a significant 0.72 percent.
About 17.7 million Americans with diabetes take medications—pills, injections, or both—to help keep their blood sugar within a healthy range, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s important, and it’s important to take medication as prescribed, but don’t stop there. People with diabetes are two to four times more likely to have heart disease or a stroke than those without this chronic condition, according to the American Heart Association.
“It’s very important to take care of your heart health too,” says Johns Hopkins diabetes expert Rita Rastogi Kalyani, M.D., M.H.S. “Making smart choices every day can help.”
Kalyani recommends starting with these six critical steps today.
Extra pounds? Lose a little. You don’t have to be a “biggest loser” or get an “extreme makeover” to enjoy big weight-loss benefits if you have diabetes. In a nationwide study of 5,145 people with type 2 diabetes, those who shed just 5 to 10 percent of their weight (for someone weighing 175 pounds, that’s a loss of 9 to 17.5 pounds) were three times more likely to lower t Continue reading

Theresa May and diabetes: How the new Prime Minister lives with her recent Type 1 diagnosis

Britain's Home Secretary and new leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May arrives in Downing Street in London
In 2013, soon-to-be Prime Minister Theresa May was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Since then, she has always insisted the condition would not impact her ability to do her job, whether in her position at the Home Office or now, as the country's second female Prime Minister.
In the UK, 3.2 million people have been diagnosed with diabetes, and it is estimated that by 2025,
this figure will reach 5 million people. Only about 10% of diabetic adults are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, like Theresa May.
Her case is quite rare, as type 1 diabetes usually develops before the age of 40. The condition is more commonly associated with children, and is sometimes known as juvenile diabetes. In fact, Theresa May was first misdiagnosed with type 2 diabetes before being told she had type 1.
"My very first reaction was that it's impossible because at my age you don't get it," Theresa May
once told charity Diabetes UK. She says the disease had come 'as a shock' but that she had gradually learnt to live with it and to be very open about it.
The disease is due to the pancreas being unable to produce insulin. Insulin is a hormone that works as a chemical messenger to help the body regulate glucose levels in the blood, and uses glucose to produce energy. Thanks to insulin, glucose can enter the cells where it is used as fuel. If insulin isn't there to perform this vital function, the amount of glucose in the blood can become too high, and on the long term, it can seriously d Continue reading