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Thursday, April 19th, 2012
ScienceDaily (Apr. 17, 2012). Researchers have discovered a promising anti-diabetic substance in the amorfrutin class of natural substances.
It provides the raw material for liquorice candy, calms the stomach and alleviates diseases of the airways: liquorice root. Chosen as the “Medicinal plant 2012,” the root has been treasured in traditional healing since ancient times. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics in Berlin have now discovered that liquorice root also contains substances with an anti-diabetic effect. These amorfrutins not only reduce blood sugar, they are also anti-inflammatory and are very well tolerated. Thus, they may be suitable for use in the treatment of complex metabolic disorders.
Licorice root. (Credit: © Yves Roland / Fotolia)
Natural substances have a surprising and often largely unexploited potential in the prevention and treatment of common diseases. For example, liquorice rootGlycyrrhiza contains different substances that help to alleviate disorders of the airways and digestive system. It has been used for millennia in traditional healing and is mainly administered in the form of tea. A team of researchers working with Sascha Sauer from the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics in Berlin has now discovered that the plant from the papilionaceae or leguminous family might also be effective in the treatment of adult (type 2) diabetes. The scientists identified a group of natural substances with an anti-diabetic effect, the amorfrutins, in the plant’s edible root. Read more
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Thursday, April 19th, 2012
Care.diabetesjournals.org: April 12, 2012.
OBJECTIVE Phthalates are ubiquitous industrial high-volume chemicals known as ligands to peroxisome proliferator–activated receptors (PPARs). Because PPAR-γ agonists modulate insulin sensitivity and are used to treat type 2 diabetes, we investigated whether circulating levels of phthalate metabolites are related to prevalent type 2 diabetes.
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A total of 1,016 subjects, aged 70 years, were investigated in the Prospective Investigation of the Vasculature in Uppsala Seniors Study. Four phthalate metabolites were detected in almost all participant sera by an API 4000 liquid chromatograph/tandem mass spectrometer. Type 2 diabetes was defined as the use of pharmacological hypoglycemic agents or a fasting plasma glucose >7.0 mmol/L. Read More
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Thursday, April 19th, 2012
Care.diabetesjournals.org: April 12, 2012.
OBJECTIVE We examined the prevalence of knowledge of A1C, blood pressure, and LDL cholesterol (ABC) levels and goals among people with diabetes, its variation by patient characteristics, and whether knowledge was associated with achieving levels of ABC control recommended for the general diabetic population.
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Data came from 1,233 adults who self-reported diabetes in the 2005–2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Participants reported their last ABC level and goals specified by their physician (not validated by medical record data). Analysis included descriptive statistics and logistic regression. Read More
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Thursday, April 19th, 2012
Working the night shift? Researchers now understand how night jobs — and chronic jet lag — can affect your insulin levels and your waistline.
Healthland.time.com: By ALICE PARK,
April 12, 2012 .
Studies show that shift work and other sleep disturbances like jet lag can disrupt your body clock and increase the risks of obesity and diabetes. But, until now, researchers haven’t really been sure exactly how these changes affect the body’s metabolism.
To find out, Dr. Orfeu Buxton, an assistant professor in the division of sleep medicine at Harvard Medical School, and his colleagues invited 21 men and women to participate in a study in a controlled laboratory setting, where they would have their sleep-wake cycles purposefully disrupted. Over the course of five weeks, the researchers determined when and how much the participants slept, ate and exercised. Although lab-based studies have previously examined the health effects of interferences with the body’s natural circadian rhythm, most of those trials have lasted only about a week or two. Read More
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Thursday, April 19th, 2012
Nutrition Journal: Sharon V Thompson, Donna M Winham and Andrea M Hutchins, 2012, 11:23 doi:10.1186/1475-2891-11-23.
Around the world, beans and rice are commonly consumed together as a meal. With type 2 diabetes increasing, the effect of this traditional diet pattern on glycemic response has not been studied fully.
Methods
We evaluated the glycemic response of bean and rice traditional meals compared to rice alone in adults with type 2 diabetes. Seventeen men and women with type 2 diabetes controlled by metformin (n = 14) or diet/exercise (n = 3) aged 35-70 years participated in the randomized 4 x 4 crossover trial. The white long grain rice control, pinto beans/rice, black beans/rice, red kidney beans/rice test meals, matched for 50 grams of available carbohydrate, were consumed at breakfast after a 12 hour fast. Capillary blood glucose concentrations at baseline and at 30 minute intervals up to 180 minutes postprandial were collected. MANOVA for repeated measures established glucose differences between treatments. Paired t tests identified differences between bean types and the rice control following a significant MANOVA. Read More
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Thursday, April 19th, 2012
Nih.gov: April 9, 2012.
A new discovery helps explain how adipose tissue (fat) affects insulin sensitivity and results in type 2 diabetes. The finding may lead to new strategies for treating the disease.
Diabetes is a disorder in the way the body uses glucose, a sugar that serves as fuel for the body. When blood glucose levels rise, the pancreas normally makes the hormone insulin, which signals cells to take sugar from the blood. Fat cells store excess glucose in the form of lipids (fats). In the most common form of diabetes, type 2, cells lose their sensitivity to insulin.
About 80% of people with type 2 diabetes are overweight, but the connection between adipose tissue and insulin sensitivity has been difficult to decipher. A research team led by Drs. Barbara Kahn and Mark Herman of Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center set out to investigate. Their work was funded primarily by NIH’s National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). It appeared in the advance online edition ofNature on April 1, 2012. Read More
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Minority Diabetes Reports
Thursday, April 19th, 2012
Dlife.com: April 17, 2012.
Advances in society having negative impact on culture
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found that Native American culture does not view obesity as taboo, believing it to be ordinary, stating, “Some studies as well as anecdotal comments from Gila River Indian Community members indicate that AI/ANs [American Indians/Alaskan Natives] view overweight/obesity as normal and healthy,” says Dr. Peggy Halpern.This mentality is the result of limited education in regards to nutrition, a lack of physical activity, and a deficient diet. Native American communities have attempted to combat the epidemic of obesity through various intervention programs designed with native people in mind. These programs aim to introduce exercise facilities, nutrition education, and overall healthy lifestyle changes. Intervention programs tailored to Native American communities are in the early stages and their longevity is uncertain. Regardless, there is a conscious, decided effort on the part of native people to improve their lifestyle and return to their ancestral eating habits. Read More
