Eat Healthy On The Go Jo
29. Have a big vegetable salad with low-calorie salad dressing when eating out. Share your main dish with a friend or havethe other half wrapped to go.
30. Make healthy choices at fast food restaurants. Try grilled chicken instead of a cheeseburger.
31. Skip the fries and chips and choose a salad.
32. Order a fruit salad instead of ice cream or cake.
How Type 2 Diabetes Happens
The vast majority of symptoms and complications of type 2 diabetes are caused by a condition called insulin resistance, caused by the accumulation of excess fat in tissues that are not designed to store large quantities of fat, namely your muscle and liver.
This accumulation of fat most often results from a low-carbohydrate diet, a Paleo diet, a ketogenic diet, or a diet containing artificial sweeteners.
In addition to your diet, a sedentary lifestyle is also associated with excess fat in your liver and muscle.
In its early stages, type 2 diabetes is referred to as non-insulin-dependent, when beta cells in your pancreas are able to secrete sufficient insulin to counteract insulin resistance.
In later stages, type 2 diabetes can become classified as insulin-dependent, when beta cells become compromised in their ability to secrete insulin.
How Does Diabetes Affect Your Heart Eyes Feet Nerves And Kidneys
Blood vessels are located throughout our bodys tissues and organs. They surround our bodys cells, providing a transfer of oxygen, nutrients and other substances, using blood as the exchange vehicle. In simple terms, diabetes doesnt allow glucose to get into cells and it damages blood vessels in/near these organs and those that nourish nerves. If organs, nerves and tissues cant get the essentials they need to properly function, they can begin to fail.Proper function means that your hearts blood vessels, including arteries, are not damaged . In your kidneys, this means that waste products can be filtered out of your blood. In your eyes, this means that the blood vessels in your retina remain intact. In your feet and nerves, this means that nerves are nourished and that theres blood flow to your feet. Diabetes causes damage that prevents proper function.
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Are There Other Treatment Options For Diabetes
Yes. There are two types of transplantations that might be an option for a select number of patients who have Type 1 diabetes. A pancreas transplant is possible. However, getting an organ transplant requires taking immune-suppressing drugs for the rest of your life and dealing with the side effects of these drugs. However, if the transplant is successful, youll likely be able to stop taking insulin.
Another type of transplant is a pancreatic islet transplant. In this transplant, clusters of islet cells are transplanted from an organ donor into your pancreas to replace those that have been destroyed.
Another treatment under research for Type 1 diabetes is immunotherapy. Since Type 1 is an immune system disease, immunotherapy holds promise as a way to use medication to turn off the parts of the immune system that cause Type 1 disease.
Bariatric surgery is another treatment option thats an indirect treatment for diabetes. Bariatric surgery is an option if you have Type 2 diabetes, are obese and considered a good candidate for this type of surgery. Much improved blood glucose levels are seen in people who have lost a significant amount of weight.
Of course other medications are prescribed to treat any existing health problems that contribute to increasing your risk of developing diabetes. These conditions include high blood pressure, high cholesterol and other heart-related diseases.
How Can I Prevent Or Delay Getting Type 2 Diabetes
If you are at risk for diabetes, you may be able to prevent or delay getting it. Most of the things that you need to do involve having a healthier lifestyle. So if you make these changes, you will get other health benefits as well. You may lower your risk of other diseases, and you will probably feel better and have more energy. The changes are
NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
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Ways To Prevent Type 2 Diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease that affects millions of people worldwide. Uncontrolled cases can cause blindness, kidney failure, heart disease and other serious conditions.
Before diabetes is diagnosed, there is a period where blood sugar levels are high but not high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes. This is known as prediabetes.
Its estimated that up to 70% of people with prediabetes go on to develop type 2 diabetes. Fortunately, progressing from prediabetes to diabetes isnt inevitable .
Although there are certain factors you cant change such as your genes, age or past behaviors there are many actions you can take to reduce the risk of diabetes.
Here are 13 ways to avoid getting diabetes.
Eating sugary foods and refined carbs can put at-risk individuals on the fast track to developing diabetes.
Your body rapidly breaks these foods down into small sugar molecules, which are absorbed into your bloodstream.
The resulting rise in blood sugar stimulates your pancreas to produce insulin, a hormone that helps sugar get out of the bloodstream and into your bodys cells.
In people with prediabetes, the bodys cells are resistant to insulins action, so sugar remains high in the blood. To compensate, the pancreas produces more insulin, attempting to bring blood sugar down to a healthy level.
Key Lifestyle Tips To Get You Started
Your healthcare provider will help you develop a plan, but it should include:
- Sit Less, Move More. Aim for some daily physical activity. Exercise is important to help prevent type 2 diabetes and has so many other benefits.;It can help you keep lost weight off, and improve your heart health, and if youre insulin resistant, it can help increase your body’s response to insulin (exercise so you will have better blood glucose control.;Plus, exercise promotes better sleep, and can even reduce the symptoms of depression, helping put you in a better mood.;In fact, researchers found that by swapping 30 minutes of sitting with any movement or activity can reduce your risk of premature death by up to 35%.2; After following about 8,000 adults, it seems the intensity and time matter much less than just reducing how much you sit; their findings can be found in the American Journal of Epidemiology.;“If you have a job or lifestyle that involves a lot of sitting, you can lower your risk of early death by moving more,” says the primary investigator, Keith Diaz, PhD, assistant professor of behavioral medicine at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York. Even sitting at a desk or on the couch for an hour or more raises your risk for poorer outcomes so get up, walk around, and stand periodically to improve your health status.
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Lose Weight If Youre Overweight Or Obese
Although not everyone who develops type 2 diabetes is overweight or obese, the majority are.
Whats more, those with prediabetes tend to carry excess weight in their midsection and around abdominal organs like the liver. This is known as visceral fat.
Excess visceral fat promotes inflammation and insulin resistance, which significantly increase the risk of diabetes (
25 ).
One study of more than 1,000 people with prediabetes found that for every kilogram of weight participants lost, their risk of diabetes reduced by 16%, up to a maximum reduction of 96% .
There are many healthy options for losing weight, including low-carb, Mediterranean, paleo and vegetarian diets. However, choosing a way of eating you can stick with long-term is key to helping you maintain the weight loss.
One study found that obese people whose blood sugar and insulin levels decreased after losing weight experienced elevations in these values after gaining back all or a portion of the weight they lost .
SUMMARY:
Carrying excess weight, particularly in the abdominal area, increases the likelihood of developing diabetes. Losing weight may significantly reduce the risk of diabetes.
31 ).
In an analysis of several studies totaling over one million people, smoking was found to increase the risk of diabetes by 44% in average smokers and 61% in people who smoked more than 20 cigarettes daily .
Choice Of Screening Test
No studies have examined the usefulness of the A1C test to predict future diabetes. Three studies have examined whether the FPG test or 2-h OGTT is a better predictor of future diabetes. In each study, a fasting and 2-h OGTT value was obtained at baseline and follow-up. The cumulative incidence of diabetes over 56 years was low in those individuals starting with a normal fasting and normal 2-h OGTT value, intermediate in those with IFG and a normal 2-h OGTT or IGT and a normal FPG, and highest in those with combined IFG and IGT. There was virtually no difference in the rate of progression to diabetes if a person had IFG or IGT. In the U.S., Harris et al. reported that some individuals with a normal FPG level will have IGT or diabetes if a 2-h OGTT is performed, but fewer people with a normal 2-h OGTT will have IFG or diabetes if an FPG test alone is done. These observations have been confirmed repeatedly in virtually every population that has been studied.
For all the above reasons, the FPG test or 2-h OGTT can be used to screen for pre-diabetes . Alternatively, some investigators have proposed logistic regression models using multiple risk factors, from which a risk score can be created . If this work can be confirmed and the sensitivity, specificity, and predictive value is acceptable, such an approach would have great advantages and utility.
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How Often Do I Need To See My Primary Diabetes Healthcare Professional
In general, if you are being treated with insulin shots, you should see your doctor at least every three to four months. If you are treated with pills or are managing diabetes through diet, you should be seen at least every four to six months. More frequent visits may be needed if your blood sugar is not controlled or if complications of diabetes are worsening.
Age Considerations And Screening Frequency
No study has explicitly addressed the age at which screening should begin, the optimal frequency of screening, or other indications for screening. In the Finnish, DPP, and STOP-NIDDM trials, participants were much older and heavier than the population initially screened, suggesting that individuals >45 years of age and who are substantially overweight are most likely to have IGT . In a cross-section of U.S. adults tested between 1988 and 1994 , the prevalence of IFG or undiagnosed diabetes in people 4074 years of age was 14.5%; the prevalence of IGT or undiagnosed diabetes in people from the same population was 22%. The prevalence of IFG or undiagnosed diabetes increases greatly between age 20 and 39 years and age 40 and 49 years and reaches a peak in people aged 6074 years. The prevalence of IFG, IGT, or undiagnosed diabetes in those >45 years of age and who are overweight are 9.3, 12.8, and 7.3%, respectively .
All told, these data suggest that pre-diabetes is much more likely to be detected in overweight middle-aged individuals than in younger lean individuals. Finally, in a subset analysis of the DPP results , there was a trend toward greater success of the lifestyle intervention among the elderly than among those <45 years of age, providing further support for initiating screening at middle-age when the intervention to be implemented is more effective.
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Symptoms Of Type 2 Diabetes
The classic symptoms of diabetes are the following:
- fatigue;
- unusual thirst; and
- unexplained weight loss.
In type 1 diabetes, the symptoms usually progress quickly and are often dramatic. In type 2 diabetes, symptoms are slower to progress. However, it is important to note that many people who have type 2 diabetes may have no symptoms. These people may find out they have type 2 diabetes when they go to the doctor for another, unrelated problem.
Can Diabetes Cause Hearing Loss
Scientists dont have firm answers yet but there appears to be a correlation between hearing loss and diabetes. According to the American Diabetes Association, a recent study found that hearing loss was twice as common in people with diabetes versus those who didnt have diabetes. Also, the rate of hearing loss in people with prediabetes was 30% higher compared with those who had normal blood glucose levels. Scientists think diabetes damages the blood vessels in the inner ear, but more research is needed.
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Prevention Or Delay Of Type 2 Diabetes
Diabetes is one of the most costly and burdensome chronic diseases of our time and is a condition that is increasing in epidemic proportions in the U.S. and throughout the world . The complications resulting from the disease are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality and are associated with the damage or failure of various organs such as the eyes, kidneys, and nerves. Individuals with type 2 diabetes are also at a significantly higher risk for coronary heart disease, peripheral vascular disease, and stroke, and they have a greater likelihood of having hypertension, dyslipidemia, and obesity .
There is also growing evidence that at glucose levels above normal but below the diabetes threshold diagnostic now referred to as pre-diabetes, there is a substantially increased risk of cardiovascular disease and death . In these individuals, CVD risk factors are also more prevalent , which further increases the risk but is not sufficient to totally explain it.
Can Prediabetes Type 2 Diabetes And Gestational Diabetes Be Prevented
Although diabetes risk factors like family history and race cant be changed, there are other risk factors that you do have some control over. Adopting some of the healthy lifestyle habits listed below can improve these modifiable risk factors and help to decrease your chances of getting diabetes:
- Eat a healthy diet, such as the Mediterranean or Dash diet. Keep a food diary and calorie count of everything you eat. Cutting 250 calories per day can help you lose ½ pound per week.
- Get physically active. Aim for 30 minutes a day at least five days a week. Start slow and work up to this amount or break up these minutes into more doable 10 minute segments. Walking is great exercise.
- Lose weight if you are overweight. Dont lose weight if you are pregnant, but check with your obstetrician about healthy weight gain during your pregnancy.
- Lower your stress. Learn relaxation techniques, deep breathing exercises, mindful meditation, yoga and other helpful strategies.
- Limit alcohol intake. Men should drink no more than two alcoholic beverages a day; women should drink no more than one.
- Get an adequate amount of sleep .
- Take medications to manage existing risk factors for heart disease or to reduce the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes as directed by your healthcare provider.
- If you think you have symptoms of prediabetes, see your provider.
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What Oral Medications Are Approved To Treat Diabetes
Over 40 medications have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of diabetes. Its beyond the scope of this article to review all of these drugs. Instead, well briefly review the main drug classes available, how they work and present the names of a few drugs in each class. Your healthcare team will decide if medication is right for you. If so, theyll decide which specific drug are best to treat your diabetes.
Diabetes medication drug classes include:
Many oral diabetes medications may be used in combination or with insulin to achieve the best blood glucose control. Some of the above medications are available as a combination of two medicines in a single pill. Others are available as injectable medications, for example, the GLP-1 agonist semaglutide and lixisenatide .
Always take your medicine exactly as your healthcare prescribes it. Discuss your specific questions and concerns with them.
Flavour Your Food With Spices
As incredible as it may seem, certain spices can be instrumental in diabetes Type-2 prevention. The most obvious one is undoubtedly cinnamon, an aromatic substance that improves glucose tolerance and has the ability to interfere with the creation of glycation products that damage blood vessel linings. This property appears to be widespread in the plant kingdom as spices and seasonings such as Jamaican allspice, black pepper, thyme, and many other herbs can also block glycation reactions. Turmeric also seems to reduce blood glucose levels, which is why it is used in traditional Indian medicine . In addition, turmerics powerful anti-inflammatory activity is a very good preventive weapon for reducing the damage caused by a sugar surplus in the cardiovascular system. Spices continue to surprise us!
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Excerpted from Eating Well, Living Well Copyright © 2009 by Richard Béliveau, Ph.D., and Denis Gingras, Ph.D. Translated by Valentina Baslyk. Excerpted by permission of McClelland & Stewart. All rights reserved.
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What Insulin Medications Are Approved To Treat Diabetes
There are many types of insulins for diabetes. If you need insulin, you healthcare team will discuss the different types and if they are to be combined with oral medications. To follow is a brief review of insulin types.
- Rapid-acting insulins: These insulins are taken 15 minutes before meals, they peak at one hour and work for another two to four hours. Examples include insulin glulisine , insulin lispro and insulin aspart .
- Short-acting insulins: These insulins take about 30 minutes to reach your bloodstream, reach their peak effects in two to three hours and last for three to six hours. An example is insulin regular .
- Intermediate-acting insulins: These insulins reach your bloodstream in two to four hours, peak in four to 12 hours and work for up to 18 hours. An example in NPH.
- Long-acting insulins: These insulins work to keep your blood sugar stable all day. Usually, these insulins last for about 18 hours. Examples include insulin glargine , insulin detemir and insulin degludec .
There are insulins that are a combination of different insulins. There are also insulins that are combined with a GLP-1 receptor agonist medication .