A Healthy Life Blog

It is possible to delay pre-diabetes and diabetes and, in some instances, prevent it from developing at all. Pre-diabetes is the stage where there are higher-than-normal levels of sugar in the blood stream, but not enough to be classified as diabetes. It is important to know that pre-diabetes can lead to type 2 diabetes, especially if left untreated. Luckily, a recent study has shown that moderate exercise and a change to healthier ways of eating can help prevent pre-diabetes and possibly diabetes itself.

Diabetes prevention is possible. If you are preconditioned to developing diabetes because of your genetic background, age, or weight, you will be happy to know that you may be able to delay or stop the onset of the disease. Persons whose ethic background includes African, Native American, Latino, and Asian are particularly prone to developing diabetes. If you belong to one of these groups and are older than forty-five, you should get tested for pre-diabetes or diabetes.

Doctors can tell if you are pre-diabetic by performing two standard tests, namely the fasting test (FPG - Fasting Plasma Glucose) and the glucose tolerance test (OGTT - Oral Glucose Tolerance Test). The results of these tests will confirm whether you have pre-diabetes, type 2 diabetes, or if you are diabetes-free.

The FPG test is normally done in the morning, and the patient is advised not to eat anything after 10 PM the previous night. A higher-than-normal reading for the FPG is an indication that you have been insulin resistant for a while.

OGTT, the glucose tolerance test, is used to measure your blood glucose level after an overnight fast, but unlike the FPG, you are also given a glucose drink two hours after the test. Your blood glucose levels are then checked two hours later; if the range is between 140 and 199 mg/dL (milligrams per deciliter), you will be considered pre-diabetic. These levels are also an indication that you may develop type 2 diabetes later on. 

If you are tested positively as having pre-diabetes, it is important to take annual tests so that you catch developed diabetes in its early stages. Early diagnosis is the easiest way to get the disease under control before too much damage has been done to vital organs.

Exercise and a change of diet, as well as moderate weight loss, have been proven to delay or prevent the onset of pre-diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association. Controlling your health is dependent on the changes you make in your daily habits. While avoiding serious illness is one reason to having a physical lifestyle, overall good health and long-lasting mobility are two other incentives to getting in shape.

To learn more go to Diabetes Forum and at Types Of Diabetes

No one, no matter how young or old, likes to hear that they are diabetic, but the truth is, diabetes strikes all different sorts of individuals and sometimes, without any warning or pattern that people can avoid. A positive diabetes test result is also difficult for your loved ones to hear and can be hard to cope with. However, being responsible for your own health despite having diabetes means you can still live a long and fruitful life.

Your diabetic condition has various implications on your physical well-being. Uncontrolled, diabetes can affect your vision, blood circulation, and dental health. Poor circulation can lead to the surgical removal of limbs. There are many consequences to not making changes to your life and maintaining the new restrictions of diet and treatment. Knowing all the ways diabetes can negatively impact your health is important in helping you make wise choices.

Other health issues

Other issues of concern to the diabetic are their dental health, skin care, weight issues, and hospitalization. Not many diabetics realize that the illness can affect their teeth. The diabetic who practices good dental hygiene and keeps his or her blood sugar levels normal is at little risk of having major dental problems. Because of the special needs a diabetic has, if you are hospitalized for any reason, you need to ensure that hospital personnel knows your status. Wearing a medic alert bracelet can make the difference between life and death in the event of a medical emergency.

How to live with diabetes

The first step in learning to live with diabetes is learning all you can about the disease.  Armed with this knowledge, you can plan your life and activities to ensure that you control diabetes and let it control you. Once you have accepted the fact that you have diabetes, you need to be determined to do whatever you can to live a normal life. Having diabetes does not mean that you cannot have a family, play sports, or have a career of your choice.

Make a plan outlining how you need to deal with your illness. This plan should include an exercise routine, your diet, and medication. In addition, you should have telephone numbers of your healthcare provider and family members close at hand. Since information is important to the diabetic who plans on taking responsibility for his health, it is a good idea to keep website addresses of sites you visit often within easy reach. Get your own glucometer so that you can test yourself daily. This is done by simply pricking your finger for a drop of blood and the machine does the rest. Keep abreast of new developments in the treatment of diabetes.

To learn more go to Diabetes Education and at Symptoms Of Diabetes

Many people think that meals for the diabetic must be unappealing and unappetizing, but nothing could be further from the truth. Diabetics can eat pretty much everything the non-diabetic can. The difference in what a diabetic eats lies mostly in portion size. Also, it is advisable that the diabetic stick to a routine in terms of the time they eat and meal sizes, as any significant change can lead to unwelcome side effects. These side effects include lower- or higher-than-regular glucose content in the blood, which can have serious medical repercussions.

The diabetic should include lots of whole grain, vegetables, and fruits in lieu of simple sugars, (such as pastries), starches, and fats. In fact, these dietary guidelines are worth being used by anyone who wants to lead a healthier lifestyle, especially those wanting to lose weight.

Another dietary change that some diabetics may need to pay attention to is calorie counting. Counting calories is especially helpful for diabetics who take medication to keep their sugar level in check. Beginners should get the help of a dietician or nutritionist to learn how to count calories properly and the best combination of foods for each meal time.

One meal plan uses what is called the exchange system, where you substitute food from one of the main groups with another. For example, you could exchange a food item from the starches section for another item with similar nutrients. The main food groups in the exchange system are starches, fruits, meats, meat substitutes (tofu etc), and fats. This makes planning and eating meals less boring, as it widens your options.

To reiterate, the most important parts of the diabetic’s diet are:

• Having set mealtimes, even for snacks, eating at the same time each day
• Eating the right-sized meals
• Eating a well-balanced meal, incorporating foods from all food groups as per the diabetic food pyramid. The diabetic food pyramid, unlike the regular pyramid, groups foods together based on their starch and fat content. As such, starchy vegetables are grouped with starches instead of other vegetables.
• Reducing your intake of fats and sugar
• Eating smaller portions

Eating as outlined above helps to keep your blood sugar at a constant level. Variations, on the other hand, can lower or increase your blood sugar levels, resulting in hyperglycemia or hypoglycemia. For your health’s sake, it is therefore best to know what you should eat and when to eat it.

To learn more go to Diabetes And Depression and at Diabetes Care

While expectant parents wish for a problem-free pregnancy, unfortunately this is not always the case. There are some women that suffer complications of their pregnancy and while some may be more mild than others, occasionally women are diagnosed with more serious illnesses. Medical reports show that over 140, 000 women in the USA will be diagnosed with gestational diabetes this year alone. Gestational diabetes normally occurs in the last three to four months of a pregnancy.

The cause of gestational diabetes is largely unknown, although there is some link to pregnancy hormones and the placenta. If your body is unable to make or use all the insulin it needs, glucose remaining in the blood eventually reaches abnormally high levels.

Unlike other health problems, gestational diabetes does not normally result in birth defects; however, it can have repercussions for the baby. Babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes tend to be large and this can lead to injuries to the child’s shoulders during the normal birthing process. The babies can have jaundice, low glucose levels and higher insulin levels than is the norm, as well as breathing problems. It is also believed that babies born with high insulin levels are at a higher risk for obesity.

Gestational diabetes can also cause problems for the mother, as delivering a larger-than-normal baby can be difficult and, in many instances, results in a caesarian section. In addition, gestational diabetes increases the risk of developing type II diabetes later on in life.

Like all types of diabetes, gestational diabetes can be controlled by a combination of eating correctly, medication, and exercise. Once a diagnosis of gestational diabetes is given, treatment should be started immediately. Special diet plans are normally given to mothers with gestational diabetes to help them control their blood sugar level. These diet plans are carried out in collaboration with a trained dietician. You will need to limit your intake of pastries and increase your intake of healthier foods such as vegetables, whole grain, and fruits.

Moderate exercise is also recommended to help control gestational diabetes, although previous levels of physical activity have to be taken into account. Physical activity helps the body use up the excess glucose without the need for extra insulin. If you were not exercising before you got pregnant, it would be unwise to start any strenuous exercise at this stage of your pregnancy.

It is also important to monitor your sugar level closely. Set up a routine so that you know when to test your glucose level.

If gestational diabetes is diagnosed during pregnancy, there is a great likelihood that it will go away once the baby is born. However, if a woman has gestational diabetes once, it is possible that she will have it again during future pregnancies. Some cases of type I and II diabetes are only discovered during pregnancies. In such cases, there will be the need for continued treatment even after giving birth.

To learn more go to Diabetes Nutrition and at Juvenile Diabetes

Managing diabetes can be very complicated, and individuals must take care to ensure proper blood circulation to all the parts of their bodies. Good oral hygiene also requires satisfactory blood circulation and diabetics must take extra care to maintain healthy teeth and gums. Gum disease and tooth loss in the diabetic is a potential problem related to poor circulation and increased salivary sugars in the mouth, which in turn provides growth of germs that lead to tooth rot.

Without proper control over blood sugar levels, diabetics leave themselves exposed to myriad dental problems. The first problem will be dry mouth, which is not only uncomfortable but doesn’t help to minimize the effect of sugar in the mouth. Dry mouth conditions also encourage the growth of bacteria. All of these problems lead to tooth decay. Diabetics must continually monitor and control their blood glucose levels for many reasons, and added to that list is the need to have healthy teeth and gums.

Because people with diabetes generally have poor blood circulation, they may not feel any pain or discomfort until their dental problems are at an advanced stage. As such, the diabetic should examine their mouths and look for any of the following:

• Tender or swollen gums
• Bleeding whenever brushing or flossing teeth
• Pus oozing from gums
• Teeth that seem to be longer than normal or seem to be moving away from each other
• For denture wearers, look out for loosely fitting pieces or dentures that no longer fit the way they used to

Diabetics who are not in control of their sugar level will find that, over time, they will get severe toothaches. This happens because the blood flow to the gums is reduced.  The ramifications to toothaches are obvious - you will not be able to chew properly due to pain. If you cannot chew, you may be tempted to skip meals or not eat a well balanced meal.

If you notice any of these signs you need to see your dentist immediately. Like everyone else, the person living with diabetes must visit their dentists at least twice per year.

Whether or not you have diabetes you should develop good dental care habits. This means brushing and flossing daily.  Use a soft-bristled brush so that you reduce the chance of irritating your gums. Ideally, you should try to brush at least twice per day and once being before going to bed. Make sure to brush your gums and tongue as well. To make sure that your toothbrush is in good condition, change it every three months. Flossing once a day is also vital to good dental health. Always rinse thoroughly after flossing to remove food particles from between the teeth.

The percentage of adult Americans who have had some form of dental or gum disease is staggering. Oral hygiene is a must to preventing tooth decay and ultimate loss of teeth.  With the circulatory problems that the diabetic faces, diabetics are at an even greater risk of developing some form of dental disease. To ensure that you keep your natural teeth for most, if not all, of your lifetime, you should begin to practice good dental care, combined with careful monitoring and control of your blood glucose levels.

To learn more go to Childhood Diabetes and at Diabetes Care

Once you have received a diagnosis of diabetes, you will need to start learning how to control the disease. It is only by controlling the illness that you can enjoy your life without some of the life-threatening complications that can accompany diabetes when left untreated. While a diagnosis of diabetes can be daunting, knowledge and a determination to take control are important to live successfully with the disease. This will make it necessary to educate yourself about the illness.

Controlling diabetes demands a change in lifestyle habits. Primarily, the diabetic must practice eating a healthy diet suitable for a diabetic, exercise regularly, and take their medication as prescribed by their health-care practitioner. One of the biggest changes someone with diabetes must face concerns the food they eat. You must now plan each meal carefully, looking at serving sizes, type of food, and cooking methods.  The diabetic should eat a well-balanced diet consisting of foods from the main food groups:

• Starch / carbohydrates
• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Meat / fish
• Dairy - yogurt and milk

Diet plays an important - possibly the most important - role in controlling diabetes. It is necessary that the diabetic and his or her caregiver be aware of dietary needs, since this can have an impact on your blood glucose levels. The amount of food you eat at each meal will be dependent on your particular caloric intake needs. Setting up a routine so that meals and medicines are taken at the same time each day diminishes the likelihood of missed meals and or medication.

Exercise

Keeping fit and exercising has been proven to play a role in controlling blood sugar levels and the overall health of the diabetic. In addition, if you are overweight, a dangerous state for the diabetic, exercise will help you shed pounds, thus reducing the risks posed by the diseases.

Other lifestyle changes

Other lifestyle changes necessary to maintain good health include controlling your blood pressure and cholesterol levels. In addition, reducing your stress will lead to a healthier you. If you smoke, it is advisable that you stop smoking as it increases the risk of complications from the disease. The diabetic should also have their eyes checked at least annually because of other health issues arising from the condition. Foot care is also important as poor blood circulation frequently leads to amputations. However, if you pay attention to changes and minor cuts, you can save yourself lots of heartache.

Ultimately, the only way to have control over your health and diabetes is to know what causes the disease and how to prevent the development of major complications. It is important that you get help to make meal plans and develop an exercise routine suited for your lifestyle. Joining groups comprised of fellow diabetics and their loved ones is a good source of information. Groups also help make the emotional challenges of dealing with the disease easier to handle. Pricking your finger to test your sugar level may be difficult at first but will become easier with time and loved ones can also assist with this task.

To learn more go to Diabetes Management and at Diabetes Research

Despite our best efforts as parents or caregivers, children will become sick. One such illness which is becoming increasingly prevalent is diabetes. However, keeping a diabetic child healthy is dependent on being informed about the disease, its symptoms, and treatments. Caring for the child with diabetes is the responsibility of all persons who, at some time or other, has to take care of that child. As such, parents need to ensure that all care givers are informed about their diabetic child’s dietary needs.

Most children tend to have type I diabetes, previously known as juvenile diabetes, although children are increasingly being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes as well. Type I diabetes occurs when the pancreas does not work and does not produce any insulin. Insulin is needed to help break down sugars (glucose) in our body to help it work efficiently. When this breakdown of sugars does not happen, as in the case of type I diabetes, the sugar stays in the blood stream.

Because insulin is important in breaking down sugars in the body to use for energy, insulin has to be taken to control the illness. Therefore type I diabetes is also called insulin-dependent diabetes. Exercise and diet are also important helping to control this type of diabetes. Caring for the child with diabetes means that you will need to recognize the signs of the illness, as well as any resulting reactions that can occur. The main signs of diabetes in children are:

Breath smelling like fruit
Constant hunger
Pulse beating faster than normal
Headaches
Being weak and dizzy
Difficulty concentrating
Vision becoming foggy
Skin tending to be cold and moist
Experiencing seizures

Next, you should be able to identify when the child is in crisis, suffering either a hypoglycemic or hyperglycemic episode, and you should know what to do help in either case. Hyperglycemia occurs when the sugar levels are too high. Rising sugar levels are generally a result of eating too much, not taking the correct amount of insulin, or not exercising enough. When a child is hyperglycemic, treatment by medical professionals is needed. A child suffering from high blood sugar will complain of the following:

Weakness
Extreme thirst
Needing to urinate frequently
Not seeing clearly
Not being hungry

With hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), the symptoms vary from child to child, but some of the typical signs include:

Clumsiness
Sudden mood changes
Sweating
Hunger
Seeming confused
Trembling
Headache
Tingling feeling around the mouth

The first course of action is to increase the child’s sugar intake by giving them something sweet to drink, such as regular soda, fruit juice or glucose tablets. Once the child is feeling better, you should give them something more solid to eat. If the child is too weak to swallow or is unconscious, administer the recommended dosage of glucagon and call for immediate medical assistance. Glucagon is a medication given by injection to rapidly increase the level of glucose in the blood. It is normally the first course of treatment in severe hypoglycemia.

Diet is a major part of keeping the diabetic child healthy. The caregiver has the responsibility to ensure that the child eats what is recommended. It is also important to talk with the child and let them know that they will get really sick if they eat too many sweets or other foods that can pose a risk. It is also important to let others, such as teachers, know that a diabetic child may need to snack to boost their sugar and energy levels. The child with diabetes must also have regular meals.

Physical exertion from exercising or sports is important to the diabetic child. The child with diabetes can engage in all normal activities once they observe two basic rules: They should avoid playing just before their meal time and have a snack ready so that they can replace lost sugar. Physical activity burns sugar and reduces energy, so the snack will be necessary to balance sugar levels.

Most importantly, children should be taught how to test their blood sugar levels during the course of the day, once they are able to do soon their own. This is important so that they can take insulin or eat something as needed.

Although the diabetic child will need special monitoring, this does not have to pose any difficulties. Parents and guardians need to inform other care givers of the possible health triggers and what to do in the event that something goes wrong. Children should also be told what to do if their blood sugar levels fall or rise. Emergency numbers should also be kept in a convenient place so that help can be easily summoned.

To learn more go to Childhood Diabetes and at Type 1 Diabetes

Is there an explosion in the occurrence  of Diabetes in our modern society?.

In order to look for a cure for diabetes we must understand what causes diabetes in the first place and then we can start to work on a cure.

Diabetes is an ailment that affects the levels of insulin in a person’s body. There are basically three forms of this disease and these are type 1, type 2 and gestational diabetes. All these forms of Diabetes relate directly to the insulin levels and  how our body functions under this altered state.

Basic information on the Types of Diabetes

1. Type 1 diabetes

In this disease the individual’s auto immune system attacks and reduces the pancreatic beta cells from producing the necessary insulin for the body to function properly. When the pancrius is not functioning as it should  the production of natural insulin is reduced below optimum levels or is in fact stopped altogether which has dangerous  implications for other functions of the body.

2. Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes.  It actually accounts for more than 90% of all cases of diabetes.  With this disease the body does not make or properly use insulin, a hormone that helps convert sugar, starches and other foods into energy.  Eventually a person’s body will stop producing insulin if they have this disease.  Unfortunately, it is not yet known why this happens.  However, genetics and environmental factors do play a role.  .

Gestational Diabetes

Gestational diabetes occurs only with women and only during pregnancy. Unlike Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, gestational diabetes has no recognizable symptoms.  The only way to know if you have it is through regular blood screenings throughout your term.  These screenings are blood tests where you have to fast overnight, then are given a sugary drink to see how your body reacts.  You need two positive readings before you are diagnosed with gestational diabetes.

Cures For Diabetes

For Gestational diabetes the cure is actually very simple. Since some hormones produced in a pregnant woman’s body promotes some tissues to resist insulin, the cure for diabetes in pregnant women is to give birth.  Your doctor will suggest a diet that will assist in keeping your blood sugars in check during your pregnancy.

However, doctors have no actual “cure” for diabetes types 1 & 2at the moments. What they do now to “cure” diabetes is to present alternatives to patients who suffer from this disease. As an actual cure for diabetes is not available there are however cures for the symptoms which are readily available.

For Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes, most doctors either recommend changing the patient’s diet and keeping a close watch or in more severe cases, injecting insulin into the body during times when it becomes too low.

Research is currently underway where  replacing the defective beta cells that produce insulin in order to refresh the pancreatic cells. This method of cure for diabetes is still undergoing experimental tests and has not been made available for public use.. So far, the research and studies have brought to light the potential problem of needing long maintenance medication in order to support the transplanted beta cells.

Although there is still a long way to go before any cure for diabetes can actually become a reality. With the rapid improvements in experimentation you should keep track of the progress that researchers and pharmaceutical companies are making towards finding a cure for diabetes.

While waiting for this cure for diabetes, you should keep healthy with plenty of regular exercise and a healthy natural diet keeping away from all those fatty, oily foods your body will be in good shape awaiting the day when the cure becomes a reality.

By Janet Lachapelle

For people with diabetes, meal planning takes on a new importance. The food you eat has a significant effect on your current and future well-being. Eating an appropriate diet means eliminating or reducing certain types of foods that can contribute to or worsen your diabetes. It means counting carbohydrates, because they have the greatest influence on your blood glucose levels. Read more…

By Michelle Dixon

All diets usually have a list of what you can do, and what you should not do. A diabetic diet is no different. Here is a list of “DOs and DON’Ts” for a diabetic food plan that should help you make meal planning a little easier while managing your diabetes. Read more…