Crusty foods may worsen heart problems associated with diabetes

Crusty foods may worsen heart problems associated with diabetes

ACES: OCTOBER 22, 2012

URBANA – A University of Illinois study suggests avoiding cooking methods that produce the kind of crusty bits you’d find on a grilled hamburger, especially if you have diabetes and know you’re at increased risk for cardiovascular disease because of your diagnosis.

“We see evidence that cooking methods that create a crust—think the edge of a brownie or the crispy borders of meats prepared at very high temperatures—produce advanced glycation end products (AGEs). And AGEs are associated with plaque formation, the kind we see in cardiovascular disease,” said Karen Chapman-Novakofski, a U of I professor of nutrition.

For years nutrition experts have advised people with diabetes to bake, broil, or grill their food instead of frying it, she said.

“That’s still true, but if you have diabetes, you should know that AGEs—byproducts of food preparation methods that feature very high, intense, dry heat—tend to end up on other tissues in the body, causing long-term damage,” she added.

If you’re fighting this vascular buildup anyway, Chapman-Novakofski thinks that consuming products containing AGEs could worsen the cardiovascular complications of diabetes.

In the U of I study, the scientists compared the 10-day food intake of 65 study participants in two ethnic groups: Mexicans (who have higher rates of diabetes and a greater risk of complications from the disease) and non-Hispanic whites. Read more

Black Women’s Health Imperative Receives Award to Implement National Program to Prevent Type 2 Diabetes

Black Womens Health: October 18, 2012

October 18, 2012, Washington, D.C. – The Black Women’s Health  Imperative (Imperative) is pleased to announce that we have received an award from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to implement an evidence-based, lifestyle-change program to prevent type 2 diabetes among Black women in five states: California, Indiana,  Michigan, Missouri and Virginia.

This 2012 Prevention and Public Health Fund cooperative agreement is part of a national effort to reduce the number of new cases of type 2 diabetes through the National Diabetes Prevention Program. The program is based on a research study led by the National Institutes of Health and supported by CDC, which showed that people with pre-diabetes could reduce their risk of type 2 diabetes by making modest lifestyle changes. Read more

No Ethnic Differences in the Association of Glycated Hemoglobin With Retinopathy

Diabetes Care: October 15, 2012

The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2005–2008

Effect of Legumes as Part of a Low Glycemic Index Diet on Glycemic Control and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

JAMA: 10/22/12

A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background  Legumes, including beans, chickpeas, and lentils, are among the lowest glycemic index (GI) foods and have been recommended in national diabetes mellitus (DM) guidelines. Yet, to our knowledge, they have never been used specifically to lower the GI of the diet. We have therefore undertaken a study of low-GI foods in type 2 DM with a focus on legumes in the intervention.

Methods  A total of 121 participants with type 2 DM were randomized to either a low-GI legume diet that encouraged participants to increase legume intake by at least 1 cup per day, or to increase insoluble fiber by consumption of whole wheat products, for 3 months. The primary outcome was change in hemoglobin A_1c (HbA_1c) values with calculated coronary heart disease (CHD) risk score as a secondary outcome. Read more

Weight loss does not lower heart disease risk from type 2 diabetes

NIH: October 19, 2012

Intervention stopped early in NIH-funded study of weight loss in overweight and obese adults with type 2 diabetes after finding no harm, but no cardiovascular benefits

An intensive diet and exercise program resulting in weight loss does not reduce cardiovascular events such as heart attack and stroke in people with longstanding type 2 diabetes, according to a study supported by the National Institutes of Health.

The Look AHEAD (Action for Health in Diabetes) study tested whether a lifestyle intervention resulting in weight loss would reduce rates of heart disease, stroke, and cardiovascular-related deaths in overweight and obese people with type 2 diabetes, a group at increased risk for these events.

Researchers at 16 centers across the United States worked with 5,145 people, with half randomly assigned to receive an intensive lifestyle intervention and the other half to a general program of diabetes support and education. Both groups received routine medical care from their own health care providers. Read more

Metabolism of Insulin Glargine After Repeated Daily Subcutaneous Injections in Subjects With Type 2 Diabetes

Effect of broccoli sprouts on insulin resistance in type 2 diabetic patients: a randomized double-blind clinical trial

Informa Healthcare: November 10, 2012

Use of antioxidant components is a new approach for improvement of insulin resistance (IR) as a main feature of type 2 diabetes and its complications. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of broccoli sprouts powder (BSP) containing high concentration of sulphoraphane on IR in type 2 diabetic patients. Eighty-one patients were randomly assigned to receive 10 g/d BSP (A, n = 27), 5 g/d BSP (B, n = 29) and placebo (C, n = 25) for 4 weeks. Fasting serum glucose and insulin concentration, glucose to insulin ratio and homoeostasis model assessment of IR (HOMA-IR) index were measured at baseline and again 4 weeks after treatment. Seventy-two patients completed the study and 63 were included in the analysis. After 4 weeks, consumption of 10 g/d BSP resulted in a significant decrease in serum insulin concentration and HOMA-IR (p = 0.05 for treatment effect). Therefore, broccoli sprouts may improve IR in type 2 diabetic patients. Read More