Type 2 Diabetes - A Family History Of Diabetes And The Effect of Fitness

Type 2 diabetes is increasingly being seen as an aspect of what is called the metabolic syndrome which is a fairly common condition characterized by insulin resistance and many related effects, including:

high blood sugar,high blood pressure,high levels of various fats in the blood, andobesity.

Obesity, particularly the style characterized by abdominal fat, is one of the criteria for the metabolic syndrome, and most people diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes are overweight in this way.

Poor physical fitness, and poor conditioning are also associated with Type 2 diabetes, especially in individuals with a family history of this type of diabetes. Anyone whose close relatives have Type 2 diabetes have a two to four times higher risk of developing the condition than people without such a family history.

Investigators in the Department of Physiology at S. Nijalingappa Medical College in India looked at fitness in healthy individuals with a family history of Type 2 diabetes and compared them with volunteers with a healthy family history.

The study, published in the Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism in November 2011, included 64 individuals, 32 with a positive family history of Type 2...

the body mass index, and waist measurement were higher in the participants with a family history of diabetes than in those without a family history of diabetes, andthose with a positive family history of diabetes were slower to recover from exercise than those with a negative family history.

The causes of Type 2 diabetes are complex, and consist of interactions of:

heredity,environment,diet andlifestyle.

Although specific genes have been associated with Type 2 diabetes, perhaps at least part of the risk associated with family history could be due to eating patterns and a sedentary lifestyle taught to children from their parents and significant others. If that is the case, then changing patterns... diet and activity, within a family could lower the risk of diabetes associated with family history. If not, healthy eating habits and exercise are still known to help prevent the development of Type 2 diabetes, so developing good eating and lifestyle habits in a family are bound to be beneficial.

Thanksgiving is just a couple of weeks away. After the feast has been consumed, instead of sitting around consider...

having a family nature hike and see how many colors of leaves and fall-flowering plants you can find. See if you can discover birds' nests that were hidden by foliage during the summer. (Don't take any of them; some birds return to the same nest each season).a hayride is a good way to get out of the house and away from food.

For Christmas and Hanukkah in the northern hemisphere, think of toys that encourage activity, such as:

In warmer climates and in the southern hemisphere, surfboards and swimsuits will encourage physical activity. Try having a beach party for a different and healthy way of celebrating the holidays.

Three ounces of turkey breast have 88 calories (368 kJ), while 3 ounces of firm tofu have only 60 calories (251 kJ), so consider tofu turkey for Thanksgiving and Christmas. The tofu variety is easier to cook and has the same flavor, so why not?

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Type 2 Diabetes - Genes And Diet!

If we think of our genes as blueprints and our food as raw materials, we would not be surprised to find people of different genetic make-ups having different nutritional needs. According to a study published in the Journal of Nutrition in November 2011, the best diet for preventing Type 2 diabetes could depend at least to some extent upon an individual's genes.

Study participants were given a diet containing 500 fewer calories than their usual intake for 2 weeks.

32 of the volunteers were given a diet containing soy protein, prickly pear, chia seed and oats for 2 months, while35 volunteers were kept on the original low-calorie diet.

All 67 volunteers showed a reduction in weight and their waist size:

those on the new diet had reduced: blood fats, lowered c-reactive protein, and a lower need for insulin by the end of the study.

The participants with a gene type called ABCA1 R230C had more weight loss and an increased level of blood adiponectin compared with patients having a gene type called ABCA1 R230R. C-reactive protein is associated with inflammation, and diabetes is an inflammatory disease. Adiponectin has to do with regulation of fatty acids and sugar and plays a role in the prevention of Type 2 diabetes.

It was therefore concluded taking genetics into account might some day be helpful in determining the best diet for any given individual.

In the mean time, since the participants with both types of genes had some improvement, let us take a look at the foods in the test diet. Soy has complete protein, containing all the essential amino acids needed for human growth and repair, making it as high in quality as animal protein, with less fat:

one ounce of tofu turkey, with 54 calories, 3 per cent of the recommended daily allowance (RDA) of iron and 1 per cent of the RDA of calcium.
one cup of prickly pear, or cactus fruit, (be adventurous) supplies 35 per cent of the RDA of vitamin C and 8 per cent of the RDA of calcium, at only 61 calories.
one ounce of chia seeds contains 4914 mg of omega-3 fatty acids and 1620 mg of omega-6 fatty acids, plus 18 per cent of the RDA for calcium. (Be careful about the amount, though; that ounce has 137 calories).
a cup of cooked oatmeal, with 166 calories, supplies 12 per cent of the RDA of iron and 16 per cent of the RDA of fiber

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Blood Sugar Level Control - 3 Strategies For Once A Day Checking Of Your Blood Sugars

I have shared some of the lows and highs of living with type 2 diabetes. Namely hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia.

Ultimately as a person living with diabetes, the goal is to have blood sugar levels within the target range of 70-130 mg/dL.

A lot of times this may require frequent monitoring of blood sugars. This is where I usually encounter a lot of resistance from my patients. They complain that testing their sugars several times a day is painful. Also that the test strips cost a lot of money. Or that because of their work schedule they just don't have the time.

I found that the more I argued with them about this, the more resistant some patients became. In fact some even stopped coming in as scheduled. They would stretch out their appointments. So instead of coming in every three months, they made it twice a year.

Now that can be harmful as it is a surefire way to develop complications related to diabetes!

So I had to get creative with that segment of my patients that just were not going to check their blood sugars consistently.

Well here are three strategies that I came up with. For the most part they ended up being about compromise. Which I think is something that is very important if you are committed to living powerfully.

STRATEGY NUMBER ONE - ALTERNATE FASTING BLOOD SUGARS LEVELS WITH POST-PRANDIAL LEVELS

This is by far my favorite strategy.

This is how it works:

On a calendar, divide the month into odd-numbered and even-numbered days.

On odd-numbered days of the month, check your fasting blood sugar level.

On even-numbered days, check your post-prandial sugar levels. Try to vary the times that you check your post-prandial levels. For instance on one day check the levels after breakfast. The next time after lunch. At another time after dinner.

This is a great way to get a general view of how your sugars run during different times of the day. And not test more than once a day.

Remember to label the times that you check your sugars so that your doctor can understand the trend. I find that certain machines, like the Accucheck One Touch Ultra has a feature that allows labeling the blood sugars also. Check your machine to see whether you can do this.

STRATEGY NUMBER TWO - CHECK POST-PRANDIAL BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS OVER THE WEEKEND

Here is when I would recommend this strategy:

For the most part there are two types of blood sugar levels that determine how well controlled a type 2 diabetic is.

The fasting blood sugar level - the blood sugar level first thing in the morning. The target range for the fasting blood sugar is 70-130 mg/dL.

The second level is the post-prandial blood sugar level. This is the blood sugar level that is taken 2 hours after a meal. The level should be less than 140 mg/dL.

Diabetes type 2, is well controlled when both the fasting blood sugars levels and the post-prandial levels are within the target range.

Let's say I have a person who cannot check their post-prandial levels during the week due to their work schedule. I then encourage them to check the fasting levels during the week. And then over the weekend, focus only on checking their post-prandial levels.

They can do this by alternating post-prandial levels between breakfast, lunch and dinner over the 3 days.

STRATEGY NUMBER THREE - CHECK YOUR BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS FOR TWO WEEKS BEFORE YOUR SCHEDULED DOCTOR VISIT

I only bring out this strategy when I am pushed to the wall. Literally I am begging a patient to work with me.

There is nothing more frustrating than not having an idea about how the blood sugars are running in between visits. It is like shooting in the dark. You get a blood test result that is high, but you have no idea how to go about correcting it.

As I tell my type 2 diabetes patients, on average they get to see their primary care physician between three to four times per year for routine diabetes care. What happens the remaining 361 days is left in their hands.

If you take blood sugars consistently for even two weeks before an office visit. And when combined with the hemoglobin A1C. Most times it is much easier to spot the problem.

WHY IT IS IMPORTANT TO CHECK BOTH THE FASTING AND POST-PRANDIAL BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS:

In an earlier article I shared some important numbers that a person living with diabetes needs to know. One of those numbers is the A1C. This is also known as the glycosylated hemoglobin. The target range for the A1c is less than 6.5- 7%. In order to achieve that goal, the fasting blood sugars are within the target range of 70-130 mg/dL. The post-prandial levels also have to be consistently less than 140 mg/dL two hours after a meal.

If your A1C is high, then by keeping a log of the blood sugars, you will be able to pinpoint the problem.

For instance, if the fasting blood sugars levels are within normal range. But the post-prandial levels are high. Then perhaps you need to adjust portion sizes.

Are your fasting levels are running high? It may be that the evening medications need to be adjusted. Or that a late night needs to be cut out. Sometimes this may even mean that the nighttime medications may need to be cut down. But your physician needs to see your glucose log. So that they can target the problem. And create a customized plan for you.

START TODAY TO CHECK YOUR BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS

Perhaps you are a newly diagnosed diabetic. Or even if you have had diabetes for some time. But just never thought it important to check your blood sugars. Let's start out fresh.

Review the instructions of your glucometer. If you do not understand how to use it then check to see whether your local pharmacist can help you. If not call your doctor's office. And schedule a visit with the nurse. Most times they can help you. Most times the machines work the same way. A few have extra 'bells and whistles' attached to them.

Just as I share in my upcoming e- book, two of the hallmarks of living a powerful life with type 2 diabetes is being committed and persistent. If you do, you will go a long way to living free of diabetes complications.

Diabetic Diet Plan - helpful advice for the preparation of diet Plan

If you are diabetic, I am sure that you want to live as normal as possible. To do this and keep your diabetes under control, you must implement a diabetic diet plan.

First off the coast with your diabetic diet plan you need to educate and do a lot of research. More you know about diabetes, that better you will be. You must learn what foods to eat and when and how do eat. It is very important in any diabetes diet plan.

It is important to everyone, only with diabetes eat healthy step. We should be a kind of Scheduler meals for all that we consume. Knowing what and how we eat is the control key and the management of diabetes. It is key in reducing risks, and helping with those already with diabetes.

Healthy eating is priority when it comes to managing a diabetic diet plan. Included in our meal planning is the variety of foods, that we need to stay healthy. Vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean meat, produced dairy fat low beans, poultry and fish complete a well-balanced variety.

Now I am going to review some tips that can help in the preparation of your he and diabetic diet plan to be put in honorant

1 Keep good records of meals you eat, including portions of food consumed. In doing so, you are able to know what foods trigger different responses.

2. A real good thing to get used to do is eat everyday at the same time. Your body will be on a schedule, which facilitates the management.

3 Forget daily exercise should be part of the way of life of all. Time to do every day at least half an hour of exercise. Going for a walk after eating is a great way to get exercise and will together make you feel better.

4 Control to other problems like high blood pressure, cholesterol and weight issues control, are all the keys in a diabetic diet plan, not mentioning not being healthier.

5. If you take prescribed drugs be sure to talk to your doctor of your diabetic diet plan. It should be you guide in the right direction and get this ball. Those who take medication should consider talking with a registered dietitian, they can be very useful.

Type 2 Diabetes - Preventing Diabetes!

According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 177 million people in the world have diabetes, and this number is expected to nearly double to 300 million by 2025. In the United States the current incidence of diabetes includes more than 18 million Americans who are already diagnosed and about half again as many who remain undiagnosed. All of these undiagnosed cases are people with Type 2 diabetes.

While Type 1 diabetes cannot be prevented, Type 2 certainly can. Historically, Type 2 diabetes was referred to as adult onset because most people did not experience this condition until their later years. Nowadays, even children can be diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. Much of this is due to lifestyle factors that can be totally prevented. Here are three major tips to help you prevent Type 2 diabetes from happening in your family:

Lose extra weight: You may not be aware that even losing 5% of your body weight, especially weight around your abdominal area, can help you to reduce your risk. Carrying around extra weight causes a whole variety of hormonal problems that can lead to Type 2 diabetes in the end. Not only can extra weight cause insulin resistance, but it can create a lot of different problems including heart disease and fatty liver, among other things. As if that isn't bad enough, if you have Type 2, your brain can't properly receive the messages delivered by the feel-full hormone known as leptin. Leptin is the hormone that tells your brain you need to stop eating. There is no question that carrying around extra weight is not good for anyone.

Eat healthy: We've all heard it before. We are supposed to eat healthier, but it is difficult. That is because there are so many processed and fast foods available to us these days. Parents should be quite concerned with what their kids are eating at school as the cafeteria is often one of the unhealthiest places they go. Even if you are feeding your children healthy food at home, they might be getting processed snacks when they go to school. Educate your children on eating a diet low in fat and calories with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains.

Start moving: Unfortunately, the average American spends almost five hours a day watching television, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest. The same as surfing the Internet and playing video games, television watching is almost always a passive, sedentary activity, one that requires the viewer to sit and stare for a long period of time in one direction. This is a somewhat unnatural task for the muscles of the human body. Unfortunately television watching is often accompanied by eating sweet or fat-laden foods.

Everyone should focus on getting at least 30 minutes of moderate physical exercise every single day. Think about the time you spend sitting in front of the television at night. We all have at least an extra 30 minutes we can use to exercise, even if it means doing 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes in the evening. You don't have to go crazy; just walk, ride your bike or swim a few laps.

Anyone who already has received a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes will tell you they wish they had made these lifestyle modifications before everything went too far. Reversing the disease is a lot harder than preventing it in the first place. Unless you want to have a lifetime of taking medication or even insulin shots, it makes sense to pay attention to these warnings now so that you can prevent the disease from ever happening to you.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Cinnamon And Diabetes Control - Including Cinnamon In Your Diet

The idea that cinnamon and diabetes management share the same objectives is easy to promote. Most people love the wholesome taste of cinnamon anyway.

Including a pinch of cinnamon into your daily food intake can be very easy. It is effortless and simple to add a small amount of cinnamon on your breakfast cereal. For those who prefer bread, this can be turned into cinnamon toast.

An exotic beverage that makes good use of cinnamon as a flavour is Chai tea. This drink from India can be purchased as a commercial blend or you could browse the Internet for suggestions of putting together your own version. Other components of the classic Chai tea are cardamom, sugar, milk, cloves and of course, the tea, but individual brews could feature vanilla beans, nutmeg, honey, ginger and fennel. Without immersing yourself in such liquid opulence, there are a few simpler suggestions. You could add a teaspoon of cinnamon to your regular tea, or add some sticks of cinnamon to a cup of boiling water, and drink that once it cools down.

The Internet is a rich source of information, yielding many fresh ideas for ways of combining and preparing food. Just search for cinnamon recipes and make up your own mind on which dishes will work best for your needs.

You can find lots of suggestions for a dish such as cinnamon steak. You could play around with the inclusion of garlic or cayenne pepper or coriander or ginger. As with all food preparation, it takes time and a little inspiration to adapt recipes to your own taste and requirements.

North African and Oriental cooking uses cinnamon in a variety of creative ways. With the food of Thailand, other spices such as chilli, garlic, ginger, basil, coriander and cumin are blended with cassia, one type of cinnamon to add a unique taste to chicken, fish and other dishes. Flavours also used with cinnamon include turmeric or cloves.

Vegetarians have no cause to be alarmed. Cinnamon combines wonderfully with a number of fruit and vegetable choices. Everyone knows how deliciously cinnamon and apples go together in apple pie, but have you thought of combining it with applesauce or walnuts and serving that with the meal of your choice. Similarly, it is a winner if sprinkled over lentils or couscous.

Puddings need not be a sacrifice in the name of healthier living. Rice pudding or carrot cake, both garnished with cinnamon, can bring your dinner to a mouth-watering conclusion.. Using cinnamon and diabetes diet suggestions wisely can give you a new lease on life.

Cold Weather Exercises - Safety First For The Diabetic

Even with the best of intentions, many people just lack the motivation to carry on with their outdoor exercise program during the cold months of the winter. Although, dropping your program just isn't a very good idea for your own health and safety, curling up beside a roaring fire with a snuggly blanket and a cup of hot cocoa just seems to be more becoming to the imagination.

But a consistent exercise program has numerous benefits to prevent several future possible diabetic complications. Several of the main advantages are:
helps to reduce the rise in your blood sugar levels when testing (or not testing) on that glucose meterit is an effective weight loss and appetite control strategyrelieves much of the muscle and joint pain common to diabetes allowing the continuous flow of oxygenated blood to pass smoothly to all the body's extremities

Staying Safe During The Winter Workout

If the idea of the treadmill in front of the television or the local gym's numerous classes is just not your idea of the ideal exercise program, with some careful pre-planning to ensure your safety, you can still follow an effective but improved daily workout regimen.
pile on the layers of clothing - As your body temperature heats up during the routine, shed one or two pieces by easily removing them and tie them around your waist or neck.
avoid dark clothing unless you wear reflective arm, leg or chest bands during the early morning or late afternoon/evening hours. Always help yourself by ensuring your easy visibility with any passing drivers.
wear appropriate footwear for the current weather conditions. Good fitting sneakers with excellent traction is a necessity during icy and snowy weather.
warm up your body itself before venturing outside. Try taking a warm/hot shower or drink a cup of hot broth-based soup. The digestive process itself actually fuels your energy reserves during your workout.
do not forget to carry along a source of fresh water even in cold weather exercise. The excess perspiration as you workout and the extra heavy breathing in cold weather both add up to an increased loss of bodily fluids, thus an increased risk of dehydration.

If all else fails and the weather is just too nasty for a day or two outside, waiting for another bright sunny day can be achieved by falling back on the treadmill and TV just until mother nature offers up another beautiful, crisp winter day.

Type 2 Diabetes - Dining Out With Diabetes Means New Challenges!

Eating out means new challenges. Eating out is more difficult because you are surrounded by enticing sights and smells and specialties of the house and extra-rich party desserts.

Being a Type 2 diabetic can be very difficult because of all the dietary restrictions. Eating out at a restaurant can pose a lot of potential issues for a diabetic as well. This is because most restaurant foods are prepared using a lot of salt and sugar, both of which are enemies of a person with diabetes.

Here are some ideas to keep you on track when you need to eat outside of your home:

when purchasing an appetizer, focus on ordering fresh fruits or vegetables if they are available.try to stay away from soups or broths as they are often filled with sodium.when ordering a salad, always order the dressing on the side so that you can control how much of it you consume.always ask the server if there are any low-salt choices available for you when ordering food. The same can be said for the dessert menu as there are often low or no sugar options that may not be listed.avoid ordering dishes that are covered with gravies or sauces or come as casseroles. This is because those kinds of foods are often a mishmash of different ingredients which may include lots of salt and sugar to give them more taste.focus on eating things that are roasted, grilled or broiled since they have very little in the way of extra fat in them.go for plain vegetables and potatoes. You can then add your own condiments in the right amounts.when ordering dessert, go for fresh fruit, sherbet, gelatin or plain cakes. Again, always ask about a low or no sugar option for diabetics.

When you are invited out to dinner, one thing that helps is to eat something beforehand, not so much that you feel stuffed, but enough to make it easier to say no. Then if the menu does contain foods that you can eat, you can enjoy a little.

Often, the portion sizes at restaurants are way too large. As soon as you get your food, ask for a container so that you can split your meal in half. Go ahead and package one half of your meal now so you won't be tempted to eat more than you need or want.

Eating out doesn't have to feel like a prison sentence to a diabetic. Instead, make plans before you go if possible. For instance, search out the menu of the restaurant online so that you can go ahead and choose what you want to eat. This will give you more time to socialize and less time to worry about what you're going to order.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

The diabetic diet, how can keep you your diabetes under control

Everyone knows the benefits of eating a healthy and balanced diet. This is particularly the case for diabetics, and there are a number of requirements of diet as a diabetic person may need to eat more or less than, to help manage their diabetes. Each person is different, there is not a form of diet that corresponds to each diabetic.

Most people with diabetes have diabetic plan orientation. Even if there is no diabetic scheme set to follow all diabetics, there are a few guidelines that apply to everyone. Maintain a healthy weight is extremely important for diabetics and this is possible, in part, by eating healthy diabetic. If a diabetic do not keep their weight down, it can lead to symptoms worsening. Of course, it is not fair diabetics who need to look at their cumbersome.

Outcome of diabetes of ranks of glucose in the blood of first too high and intense sugar overload can thinking disorders. A diabetic be able to eat the things of the majority, but resting on the severity and the type of diabetes that they have, it is mandatory to eat foods convinced in deference. This applies to sugar, carbohydrate and plumps specific types. Alcohol is supposed to at all times be drunk in deference, but it is still extra vital for everyone on a diet of diabetic to cut their spending.

It has no demanding for a diabetic to renounce their sweet treats completely, simply on the amount of cookies and cakes they consume. However, the use of a variety of sugar to the careful, fructose, no need to avoid overload. Fructose is sugar fruit and initiated in extremely high in fruit juices. A diabetic diet is supposed to include a high with a small glass of juice on an all the days of the bases. Fructose is also classified an ordinary carbohydrate next to lactose, milk and sucrose, ordinary sugar. These in that all must be eaten custom amounts on several kinds of diabetic diets.

Complex carbohydrates, dissimilar Plains carbohydrates, are an essential element of every food and a diabetic diet. They do not work in the body to create energy. Brown rice, whole wheat pasta and bread are a number of the most excellent foundations of compound carbohydrates.

Diabetic diets as stop for help needs them additional diseases and circumstances separately of the diabetes itself. Night of the kidney and infection of the heart are two examples. It is essential to ensure that the diabetic diet is not too fat soaked, that may be on the situation of additional health. The body requires a number of bold to the role properly inputs except what can be establish in sunflower oil, olive oil, vegetable oil and additional unsaturated fats.

Type 2 Diabetes - Managing Diabetes and High Blood Pressure

High or raised blood pressure is very common in people who have Type 2 diabetes. You have twice the risk of hypertension if you have Type 2 diabetes compared with a person of similar age without diabetes. The combination of hypertension and diabetes doubles the risk of macrovascular complications.

When the heart beats, blood is pumped into the arteries. When the blood is forced into these arteries, the walls will resist and it creates pressure within the arteries. That pressure is what allows blood to flow throughout your entire body. Your pressure is the highest when the heart is contracting and falls when it relaxes between beats. This is what that the blood pressure cuff at your doctor's office is monitoring when you have your blood pressure level checked.

The systolic number is the one on the top while the diastolic is the one on the bottom. The systolic number shows the peak pressure when your heart is contracting while diastolic looks at the pressure when your heart is resting between contractions. It can change throughout the day depending upon what you're doing, what you've eaten and other factors. Your pressure will likely be different if you're lying down than when you're standing up. Anxiety and stress can also make changes to your blood pressure.

Doctors used to think a measurement of 120/80 was a normal reading, although they have since changed that. Most doctors want you to stay under 120/80. As your reading inches upward, you could see a greater risk for major health issues such as heart attack and stroke. The first stirrings of hypertension are systolic readings that are higher than 140 or diastolic readings that are higher than 80.

one out of every four American adults actually has hypertension already.African-American people have a higher incidence of the condition than Caucasians.high blood pressure also tends to run in families.

Hypertension typically hits people when they are over 35 years old. In fact, by age 65 more than half of all people in the United States have high blood pressure. Women after menopause are very susceptible to the condition as are women who take birth control pills.

Being overweight and not exercising enough are two of the major risk factors for high blood pressure. In addition to that, people who eat too much salt or drink too much alcohol, may also run the risk of increasing their reading.

Thankfully, stress is not something that will cause hypertension long-term although it can temporarily spike the blood pressure level. Smoking increases blood pressure each and every time a person is smoking a cigarette. The same can be said for caffeine which causes a temporary spike in blood pressure as well.

Thankfully, hypertension can be treated by making lifestyle modifications to your diet such as:

lowering your salt intake, andincreasing your intake of foods containing potassium,

and adding more exercise to your regimen.

Very high blood pressure is dangerous for people with Type 2 diabetes, and should be treated.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Type 2 Diabetes - Diabetes and Bone Formation

Far from being a lifeless frame, bones are very much alive, constantly being remodeled as needed. Astronauts in space lose bone mass because they do no weight-bearing at all during their space missions. Active individuals add mass to their bones as they use them.

Cells called osteoclasts break down bone while another type of cell, osteoblasts, build it up. The mechanism for bone remodeling is complex and not completely understood, but one of the molecules involved is sclerotin, which is thought to inhibit osteoblasts from doing their job.

Osteoporosis, or brittle bone disease, is responsible for bone fractures in both older people and people diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. Although diabetics tend to have less mineral mass in their bones than non-diabetics, mass is not the only factor affecting bone strength. The architecture of bones is as important as the mass, and the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures found that women with Type 2 diabetes had a higher rate of fracturing their hips, thighs, and feet than did non-diabetic women. Osteoporosis tends to be more common in diabetics with poorly controlled blood sugar levels, than in those with good control.

Researchers at the University Hospital of San Cecilio in Granada, Spain, guessed that sclerotin might be higher in uncontrolled diabetes than in healthy individuals and designed and carried out a study to test their idea.

This Study: Their study, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, in October 2011, included 74 volunteers with Type 2 diabetes and 60 healthy participants. Sclerostin levels were significantly higher in diabetics than in non-diabetic participants. The highest levels of sclerostin were found to in those who had diabetes the longest, and in those who had the highest levels of hemoglobin A1c.

Studies are underway to treat osteoporosis by using antibodies against sclerotin. In the mean time, controlling Type 2 diabetes could be one way of keeping sclerotin within normal limits. With good diabetic control, your hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) should be 7 per cent or less.

Osteoporosis is a disease that often goes unrecognized until there is a fracture. Several tests are available to monitor bone density and architecture, and they should be discussed with your doctor. Type 2 diabetics sometimes fall because of:

neurological damage,poor coordination,poor sensation,pain in the feet, andpoor eyesight...

all of which should be addressed to prevent bone fractures.

Getting enough calcium, vitamin D and exercise can all help to keep your bones strong. Take good care of your bones so they can take good care of you.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Type 2 Diabetes - Diabetes And The Benefit Of Artificial Sweeteners!

The variety of artificial sweeteners available is absolutely confusing for someone newly diagnosed with either pre-diabetes or Type 2 diabetes. Has your doctor and/or dietitian advised you to cut down your carbohydrate and sweet intake and, now to your horror, you find yourself struggling to fight your craving for sweet treats? When you have received a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes, one needs to be careful when adding sweetness to your eating plan.

We gravitate toward sweet flavors because we start out with the slightly sweet taste derived from breast milk. These days, products can be sweetened without containing a drop of sugar... thanks to the introduction of artificial sugars and sweeteners. Artificial sweeteners do not affect your blood sugar levels as they do not contain sugar but they may contain a low number of calories (or kilojoules).

If you are really craving something sweet, some prepared foods and drinks containing artificial sweeteners are the next big thing to help you curb your strong desire for a mouth-watering treat. Artificial sweeteners, also called sugar substitutes or low-calorie sweeteners, are used to add sweetness to your foods and drinks without too many added calories or carbohydrates. However, many of these foods also contain carbs and calories... so be sure to check the label and keep your quantity to a minimum. Just eat enough to curb your sweet craving.

The non-nutritive sweeteners, are sugar substitutes or artificial sweeteners that do not contain any calories and will not affect your blood sugar levels... they cannot be processed and broken down by your body. They, except for aspartame, pass the intestinal tract unaltered.

The FDA- approved Products in the U.S. Market include:

aspartamesucraloseneotamesaccharinacesulfame potassiumstevia

Many food and drink manufacturers use these sweeteners to accommodate the needs of diabetics and many weight-loss enthusiasts.

In the 1980's, aspartame was invented... this is sold as Equal, Sweetmate and Spoonfuls. As it is derived from natural sources, it was considered a nutritive sweetener... this means aspartame is digested and metabolized the same as other protein food. As aspartame is approximately 200 times sweeter than sugar, you really do not need much of it to reach the desired level of sweetness you are seeking. Aspartame is usually found in:

breakfast cereals,beverages,candy and gum,deserts,salad dressings, andvarious snack foods.

Sucralose, another sweetener, is sold as Splenda. It is a white crystalline powder, made from sugar itself and 600 times sweeter than table sugar. It is not absorbed in your digestive tract, so it contains no calories at all. Splenda is often found in:

frozen foods,hot or cold foods,baked goods, and manypackaged foods.

Although these artificial sweeteners can help you cut the carbs, most health experts still agree the best way to lose weight is to reduce your overall caloric intake and increase your energy expenditure through physical activity. Artificial sweeteners are only here to help you satisfy your cravings sometimes, without giving you a raise in your blood sugar level.

When eating foods containing these sweeteners, you should still take some special precautions. While these sweeteners by themselves do not add any calories, the foods where they are usually found have loads and loads of calories. Eating foods containing any artificial sweetener does not mean you can just throw all caution to the wind. You still need to watch your caloric (or kilojoule) intake.

What are the downsides of using these products?

a bitter aftertaste. Most of the artificial sweeteners in the market have a bitter aftertaste. Some people can tolerate this taste while others don't.some artificial sweeteners, such as Splenda, can alter your intestinal bacterial environment. This results in the decreased resistance of your gastrointestinal tract against the attack of disease-causing microorganisms, according to a study published by the Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health in 2008.artificial sweeteners, Splenda for example, can cause possible drug interactions according to the above-mentioned study published by the Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health. However further studies are necessary to establish this fact.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Type 2 Diabetes - Stress Increases Blood Sugar Levels!

Stress will increase your blood sugar levels. There are many types of stress, and with the exception of maybe long-term emotional stress, they will all increase blood sugar. This also occurs in non-diabetics.

Stress has an incredibly negative impact on the body. It puts an unnecessary strain on the body - most notably your organs. In essence, stress can kill you, as seen in the high rate of heart attacks and stoke. But stress affects diabetics even more.

Stress also includes physical stress such as:

infections,trauma,surgery, or evenintense heat or cold

In all these situations, insulin resistance increases and in non-diabetic people increases slightly.

How is that possible? Because stress causes blood sugar levels to increase. The proof of this is seen anytime you are in a dangerous or stressful situation. Your body responds by giving you a boost of energy to get you through the dilemma. Where does that boost come from? Cortisol and epinephrine kick in to elevate sugar levels in assisting with the crisis.

Intense emotional stress that triggers the release of adrenaline, the fight-or-flight response, increase blood sugar levels slightly in non-diabetics and can make a diabetic person's blood sugar levels soar.

These fluctuations wouldn't be considered so vast in range for a non-diabetic, but for a diabetic they can be detrimental. That's because a non-diabetic has the ability to easily recover from these spikes, while a diabetic doesn't.

A common association with stress is emotional eating. This type of eating has nothing to do with hunger, but rather an episode or a situation that has occurred in the diabetic's life. Just like with sadness or sometimes even with fear, the individual medicates with food since it is non-judgmental and provides a sense of relief, albeit temporary in nature.

While this affects a non-diabetic's weight, it does more than this with a diabetic. It brings on wild spikes and dips in blood sugar levels. It also implements a wide array of medical conditions, some of which can be quite dangerous.

Plus, when a person with Type 2 diabetes is anxious and soothes themselves with food they are almost assuredly not exercising. This brings on a whole new realm of health concerns. Separately, the sedentary lifestyle or the massive intakes of food are bad for an individual. When placed together, they can jeopardize a diabetic's health very quickly.

The right thing to do is to find other ways to deal with stress. Having healthy snacks on hand is one surefire way. That way, if you get the urge to put something in your mouth, at least it will be a healthy choice.

The other positive way to deal with emotions is to exercise. Nothing burns off stress faster than getting up and moving. Even something as simple as walking can do wonders for lowering your stress levels. At the same time, you are benefiting your heart, your blood sugar levels, trimming your body down to a more healthy weight, and helping your entire body.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Type 2 Diabetes - Checking for Heart Disease!

Type 2 diabetes affects the small (micro) and large (macro) blood vessels. Driven by the rapid beating of your heart, your cardiovascular system includes many, many miles of veins, arteries, and capillaries. If your heart stops beating, or if your major blood vessels clog, you could die.

The coronary arteries feed blood to the heart muscle itself, and a blockage can have serious consequences. Researchers in the National Center for Global Health and Medicine in Tokyo, Japan, looked at the coronary arteries of diabetics with blood vessel damage in other arteries, in order to determine whether their coronary arteries could be blocked as well.

Their study, published in the British Medical Journal in January 2011, included 112 people with Type 2 diabetes and diseased blood vessels in either the eyes, kidneys, hands or feet, or brain. It was found...

79 per cent had heart muscle that was not getting enough blood.53 per cent had coronary artery disease with more than a 50 per cent blockage.

Men were over six times more likely to have coronary artery disease than were women. None of the diabetics had suffered any signs or symptoms of heart disease.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, causing 26 per cent of mortality. Coronary artery disease is the most common kind of heart disease. The Centers for Disease Control list:

inactivity,obesity,high blood pressure,cigarette smoking,high cholesterol, anddiabetes

as risk factors for coronary artery disease.

Type 2 diabetics are advised to be monitored for blood pressure, weight, cholesterol levels and blood fats on a regular basis. If high blood pressure, overweight, obesity, high cholesterol, or abnormal blood fats are discovered, they should be addressed sooner rather than later.

A prime indicator of heart health is your blood pressure. If blood pressure is found to be high, being overweight or obesity is frequently the cause, so both can be treated with a low-calorie, high nutrient diet, and exercise. Taking a walk after dinner every night is one way to begin lowering blood pressure. So is a low-fat diet. Which brings us to the problem of high cholesterol. Diets low in meats and dairy products are best for lowering cholesterol levels. The position of the American Dietetic Association is that vegan diets, without any meat or dairy products, are best for controlling Type 2 diabetes, so the best diet for diabetes is also the best kind for the heart.

When diet and exercise are not enough, medical and even surgical methods are available. Many kinds of medication are available for lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels and helping with abnormal blood fats. Some doctors recommend an aspirin a day for preventing heart disease in diabetics over 30. Surgical methods of weight control are also available and have shown success in some people who have been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Type 2 Diabetes - Is It True Exercise Benefits Diabetics?

Whilst many Type 2 diabetics are advised exercise is just as important as diet and in some cases as important as drugs in managing diabetes, there are still some diabetics who question how much help it offers managing their blood sugar levels. Is there significant enough proof to warrant including exercise as a part of their management program?

The answer is yes, there is sufficient proof exercise is really beneficial to helping Type 2 diabetics with their disease. Once you break down the ways that exercise helps, it is easy to justify getting up and incorporating it as part of your daily routine.

Starting with the heart: Exercise helps to improve circulation which in turns helps to prevent plaque buildup and pumps oxygen-rich blood to the much-needed areas of the body. Improved circulation also helps to ward off issues caused from poor circulation. Having diabetes doubles your risk for serious cardiovascular disease and makes it two to four times more likely you will die from it compared to the general population.

Exercise helps your body to release hormones and glucagon: These work to break down fatty liver deposits. It also helps your liver to deal with insulin more effectively, which allows for more control over your blood sugar levels.

Burns more body fat: The better you train your muscles the better they burn fat. By burning excess fat, exercise keeps the body slim and takes unnecessary pressure off of your joints and muscles that are strained when trying to carry around an overweight body. Excessive weight is one of the primary reasons why older individuals have to undergo knee replacements.

Exercise helps to lower blood sugar levels: Both cardio (aerobic, such as fast walking, cycling), and strength training (such as push-ups or using weight machines) lowers blood sugar levels during and after exercise. As soon as someone becomes involved in regular exercise they experience a change, or rather more of a balance, in their glycemic level. Exercise also tones and builds muscle, which utilizes glucose much more efficiently than fat.

But for someone with a sedentary lifestyle, jumping out there into an exercise program requires patience. You have to slowly incorporate it into your day or else starting out too quickly can have a negative impact. You can force yourself into blood sugar drops, creating the complications from a hypoglycemic episode. This can also discourage a new exercise fanatic to rethink their decision.

Doing the right type of exercise is also crucial. Aerobic exercise is the best since it is low impact and burns calories more efficiently. Engaging in exercise that is too intense will drop sugar levels too low, too quickly.

The recommended amount of exercise is at least 30 minutes per day, at least three days per week. If this is too much, too soon, then cut the sessions in half. As your endurance builds, ramp them back up.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Type 2 Diabetes - How To Stay Well With Diabetes!

Hearing you have been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes doesn't have to spell disaster. Like other diseases, the extent to which Type 2 diabetes and high blood sugar levels affects your life, is directly proportionate to how seriously you take the news of your diagnosis. There are steps to take that will greatly reduce the impact diabetes has on your health and life.

The number one method for controlling Type 2 diabetes is to monitor your blood sugar levels. Yet, it is often the most overlooked. Diabetics often rely on:

how they feel,the time since their last meal,their recent history of blood sugar readings, etc.,

to determine how they should respond to monitoring.

Unfortunately, a history of readings is not a fool-proof method of treatment. Blood sugar levels spike, other conditions come into play and food varies.

Once you are diagnosed, you have to be diligent about checking your levels... even if you feel fine. This is especially true after a meal. Eating out can trigger an unexpected response. Blood sugar levels can unexpectedly spike after eating if you are not paying close attention to your food intake. Although other factors can come into play, you can expect about a 40 to 60 mg/dL (2.2 to 3.3. mmol/L) difference from a pre-meal blood sugar reading and a reading 2 hours after a meal. If the difference is more than this, it could mean:

the meal contained hidden fat, carbohydrates, or calories (kilojoules),you ate a larger meal than usual,the meal contained a moderate to high fat level (this causes a delayed rise in your blood sugar),your medications may need to be adjusted,you need to review your eating plan.

Skipping meals is another no-no. Just because you don't feel hungry is not adequate reason to skip a meal. Your body may not be registering its need in the form of hunger pains, but you can bet your blood sugar is planning an assault on your body if you don't have something planned for it to work off.

Snacks are another important factor. A snack is often more important than a meal because it is a carry-over to the next refueling session. The diabetic needs a constant supply of fuel to maintain adequate blood sugar levels. When a non-diabetic goes too long without something in their system, all they can expect is a "growling" stomach. But for a diabetic, you are flirting with danger.

But spacing meals is not the only concern with food: it also has to be the right mixture of foods:

combining the right fruits and vegetables,including enough fiber, andlimiting fat and cholesterol

are all ways that you can balance your diet and still have variety.

Food preparation rounds out the food category. Eating foods that are fried and covered in sauces counteracts the nutritional value you would receive. Plus, the added calories and fat content will cause chaos with your blood sugar levels and your weight.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Type 2 Diabetes - What Happens When Diabetics Don't Change Their Lifestyle?

If you have been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, you know all too well how important it is to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Not only does your lifestyle directly affect your diabetes, but ignoring such advice directly impacts so many other diseases and complications that are a result of diabetes running amok. Yet, there are still those who have Type 2 diabetes and make the decision not to make these changes. What happens to them?

The individuals who make the conscious decision to remain in the lifestyle that helped to bring about Type 2 diabetes do so because they choose to. But if they were fully aware of the consequences of this decision, perhaps more of them would change their mind and adapt a better way of life. It might be tempting to imagine that simply popping a few pills or taking insulin injections will take care of your problem. But Type 2 diabetes is a disease for which medication alone is not enough.

The management of your diabetes needs to be supported by:

a good diet,enough exercise, andproper medications.

When a Type 2 diabetic ignores a healthier lifestyle, they risk a multitude of complications. To begin with, they can experience episodes of low blood sugar: although this is rare for people with Type 2 diabetes who are not taking hypoglycemic drugs or insulin. High blood sugar is the greatest single danger for people with Type 2 diabetes.

When blood sugars are not stable, the organs of the body most likely to be damaged by diabetes are those that do not require the presence of insulin to metabolize blood sugar.

Organs that can be damaged:

eyeskidneysnervesblood vessels

Organs generally not damaged:

Several eye disorders are possible. Glaucoma, cataracts and retinopathy are common conditions that come from diabetes raging out of control. Left untreated, some of these can inflict permanent harm to your vision and even produce total blindness.

Large blood vessel complications can affect the brain, heart, legs, and feet in people with diabetes. Small blood vessel disease can lead to problems with the eyes, skin, kidneys, and nerves, and can slow-down healing.

Vascular problems are usually related to atherosclerosis, a hardening of the arteries resulting from a buildup of deposits along blood vessel walls. This also impedes blood flow. While this can destroy tissue, it also limits oxygen flow. One of the areas receiving less oxygen is an area that you always want to be well-oxygenated: the brain. Without proper oxygen, the brain experiences dizziness, lethargy, and an inability to reason and think clearly. Memory is also dramatically affected.

Restricted blood flow puts additional work on the heart, too. Now, it has to compensate for partially blocked vessels by pumping harder. This means an unnecessary strain being placed on it. This situation can cause a heart attack.

Let's not forget the kidneys. The body's filtering system has to overcome all of the extra glucose passing through it. Instead of releasing the normal amount in the urine, now it doesn't have the ability to keep up with the excess volume of sugar. The kidneys become damaged because of it and the individual has to be placed on dialysis permanently until a transplant can be arranged.

Another area where the extra sugar will attack is the nerves. All over the body, the sugar that is supposed to be burned for fuel is overwhelming the body. There is too much of it and it has to go somewhere. So it ends up in the bloodstream, coursing its way through the body and attacking nerves everywhere. These nerves will eventually fold under the constant barrage and become permanently damaged. This results in numbness, tingling and pain.

But the damage is not over yet. Even your hearing isn't spared damage. Tiny hairs in the inner ear are not able to process the sugar and you start to develop hearing loss. Your hair also begins to fall out. Your skin on your arms and legs thickens and glazes over. Your nails become brittle and sometimes yellowish. You develop bad breath and you experience severe gum disease and periodontal disease.

Not enough? Men suffer impotence, women develop yeast infections and urinary tract infections, while both increase their risk of heart disease, stroke and some cancers.

If that isn't enough reasons to keep your Type 2 diabetes under control, nothing will convince you.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Borderline Diabetes - Is There A Difference Between Prediabetes And Type 2 Diabetes?

If you have been diagnosed with prediabetes, then this is the stage to get into action! There is no way that you could get into action without awareness of the problem.

The first step begins with awareness.

What is Borderline Diabetes?

Prediabetes (or borderline diabetes) is when the blood sugars are outside of the normal range but not in the range to diagnose type 2 diabetes.

The clinical name for this is called impaired fasting glucose.

Prediabetes or borderline diabetes is important because it serves as a warning sign. This is the time to make important adjustments in lifestyle. Or the risk of becoming a type 2 diabetic rises.

How is Prediabetes Diagnosed?

The fastest way to diagnose prediabetes is with a fasting blood sugar. I usually recommend an overnight fast of at least 8 hours and if possible up to 12 hours.

Normal blood glucose levels for diabetes are between 70-99 mg/dL. Essentially less than 100 mg/dL.

When the blood glucose level is between 100-125 mg/dL, this indicates prediabetes or borderline diabetes.

If the level is over 126 mg/dl this indicates type 2 diabetes.

Another test that can be used to diagnose prediabetes is called the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT).

This is a more detailed test. First, a fasting blood glucose level is performed. Once again an 8-12 hour fast is required.

Then you are given a very sweet liquid to drink. This is equivalent to 75 G glucose or the amount of sugar in a can of coke for instance.

Two hours after drinking this, another blood test is done. If this level is between than 140 and 199 mg/dL.

When the blood sugar level is over 200 mg/dL then this indicates type 2 diabetes.

Does Borderline Diabetes Have Any Symptoms?

There are no symptoms associated with borderline diabetes. So do not expect to have the common signs of diabetes.

What Are The Risks Associated With Prediabetes?

The main risk is developing type 2 diabetes. However people with prediabetes are at an increased risk for heart disease, strokes and high blood pressure.

Get more information about how diabetes and hypertension are linked.

Remember that the same risks that put you at risk for type 2 diabetes can also put you at risk for prediabetes.

What Can You Do To Prevent Prediabetes From Becoming Type 2 Diabetes?

Just as I pointed out earlier in the article, being diagnosed with prediabetes should serve as a warning signal to make adjustments in your lifestyle.

In other words it does not mean that inevitably you will become a type 2 diabetic.

Patients diagnosed with prediabetes should be closely monitored. This is one of the times that, with a commitment to a healthy lifestyle, progression to diabetes can be reversed.

The hallmark of successfully reversing prediabetes remains diet and exercise. If you are overweight or obese, commit to losing weight.

Just by losing 10% of your current body weight you could reverse these effects.

It is important to partner with your physician during this critical stage. By monitoring your blood tests, you and your physician are better aware of corrective action to take.

Sometimes your doctor may opt to put you on a medication called metformin. When this happens, many times patients may get confused because they don't quite understand why they are on a medication for diabetes even though they do not have diabetes. But research shows that metformin helps to reduce the probability of developing full-blown diabetes.

So the next time that you hear someone tell you that they were just diagnosed with prediabetes or borderline diabetes, do them a favor and educate them about it.

Let them know that this is the time to begin to make changes in their lifestyle.

Type 2 Diabetes - Easy Ways For Diabetics To Keep Their Body At A Healthy Weight!

Whether you are pre-diabetic or have been diagnosed with full-blown Type 2 diabetes, returning your body to a healthy weight and keeping it there, is crucial to help you live a long, healthy, happy life. No one wants to go through life feeling cruddy and not fitting into their clothes. Thankfully, there's a lot you can do each and every day to keep yourself living in a healthy body.

Here are some tips to get you started:

set goals that are realistic. You don't want to set such unobtainable goals you become frustrated. That just sets you up for failure.keep a record of everything you eat and drink. This will allow you to see patterns and know what you are doing wrong.cut out sugary drinks. You will be surprised at how much weight you can lose just by getting rid of sugary soft drinks, sweetened juices and sweet tea. These are just empty calories that you don't need.use smaller plates. When you eat off a smaller plate, you can fill it up and feel like you are going to eat a lot more food than you would be eating from a larger plate.dip your fork. Instead of putting dressing all over your salad, put it on the side and dip your fork in it before each bite. You will still get the taste, but with a lot fewer calories or kilojoules.slow down when you are eating. Savor the taste of your food. Don't watch TV or do anything else that will distract from enjoying each bite of your meal.never shop for groceries when you are hungry or tired.start each meal with a salad... how about a green salad with kidney beans and raw vegetables. You will feel full faster, but get more nutrients and fewer calories.don't eat in your car.choose lean proteins such as skinless chicken breast, and beans.eat vegetables at every meal.put your fork down between each bite of food. This will slow down your eating and allow you to really taste what you are eating. It also takes at least 20 minutes for your brain to get the message your stomach is comfortable and that you can stop eating.don't eat standing up, your brain and stomach are much more likely to register you are eating if you are relaxed and enjoying your meal.snack on raw fruits and veggies.use fruit for dessert... with a few chops of a knife, you can turn a few pieces of fruit into a beautiful fruit salad. Drizzle a little lemon or orange juice over the top to cover the fruit with it.drink at least 8 to 10 glass of water each day. Why not drink a glass of water before eating each meal.

Just following these simple rules will help you to lose weight and keep it off. Remember, it is a lifestyle change and not a diet. You should strive to live this way for life. Keeping a healthy body is critical to making sure that you live a longer life.

The only way to lose weight without medication or surgery is to take-in less energy (calories or kilojoules) than your body needs. There are no magic ingredients or food combinations to change this basic metabolic fact.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

A diabetes diet Plan and the Menu

A carefully planned diabetic diet is the best way to take control of a situation of diabetic. Keep in mind that diabetes is a condition of the body and not a disease under contract which can be corrected with medication. With diabetes, the body produces less quantity of insulin and the rate of sugar in the blood stem up to. Therefore the primary repair is to ensure that the diet of the body is controlled. This is to prevent the firing of sugar levels. Remember that this is also to make the body to compensate for the absence of insulin. With controlled time and a diabetes diet plan, the effects of diabetes on the body can be properly managed.

The wire of the years, the diabetes diet plan was a total absence of sugar. Recommended for years now. This is not the best practice. With the absence of sugar and carbohydrate intake, most diabetic patients end up in the coronary neighbourhoods. This is because the body is unable to obtain the essential dose of carbohydrate that is necessary for a proper functioning of the body. More recent research have been made on the diabetes diet plan and carbohydrate with the GI index were introduced.

IM a diabetes diet plan is all about the type of carbohydrate that is collected by the body. There are certain types of carbohydrates that are rapidly broken down by the body. These give rise to the levels of sugar in the body and to alleviate the conditions of diabetes. However, there are also some types of carbohydrates with the lowest index of IM which is good for the consumer. These types of carbohydrates do not instantly interrupt in the body for easy assimilation. They need much time to be consumed by the body, and these do therefore not raise levels of sugar in the body. These can therefore be included in the plan of diabetes diet.

There are many food sources available with low GI index value, and they are always included in the diet of a diabetic for better management of the situation. Condensed milk and yogurt are examples of these food products. Fruits such as oranges, apples and pears are recommended. Vegetables such as sweet corn and sweet potatoes are also recommended. Whole grain breads and other breads such as flax and fruit bread should be part of the diet plan. If consumed in appropriate amounts, these can compensate for the absence of carbohydrates in the body.

Type 2 Diabetes - Traveling With Insulin

For Type 1 diabetics and diabetics diagnosed with Type 2 and requiring insulin injections, traveling brings on a whole new set of challenges. One particular area of concern for some is keeping up with insulin. How do you properly plan for a trip to ensure that you have what you need?

Of course, the first and most important point to make is to ensure you pack plenty of insulin for the trip. You always want to have extra just in case you:

end up staying longer than expected,encounter a delay, orif you were to accidentally damage some of your supply.

Insulin vials don't take up too much room and it is definitely worth the peace of mind to have extra on hand.

Checking-in your insulin and diabetes equipment: If you are traveling by plane it is best to have your insulin supply and it's related equipment contained in their original containers with the original labels. This is to help avoid any unnecessary delays when going through security checks. If you do not have these in the proper packaging make sure to get some from your pharmacy. Do not risk carrying it in plain packaging or the security staff could confiscate it.

But security checks are not the only issue to deal with. Check ahead of time with your transportation company about the luggage regulations. As well as the legal guidelines, you will need to know how your bags will be stored and the temperatures they will be exposed to. The luggage storage hold of the bus or train, or even the baggage hold of the plane, may experience extreme temperature differences during travel...

most anti-diabetic medications,glucose meters, andtesting strips

need to be stored at room temperature. Many injectables must be kept cool.

Travel bags: Always carry two different travel bags with you and split your insulin and supplies into both bags. That way, if one bag is lost, you will have an ample supply of what you need until your other bag can be located.

When packing, you have to be extremely careful with your supplies. This all comes down to the type of case you will be carrying it in. There are many different types on the market so make sure you do your homework before purchasing. It needs to be compact enough not to be cumbersome, while still offering substantial protection. Travel bags are made specifically for diabetes supplies and can be purchased from your pharmacy and/or available online.

Also, make sure your case is well insulated for extreme weather variations. Your supplies cannot get too hot or too cold so check the insulation rating before you buy. Also, if traveling by plane, make sure your supplies are in your carry-on luggage. Temperatures in the cargo compartment can get very cold and your supplies could become permanently damaged if left there throughout the flight.

Lastly, make sure you carry some snacks of your own to help prevent overeating or to help fill you when there are flight delays, or even meal delays. If your blood sugar levels are low, you may need to grab something to eat. Having the right items on hand could avoid having to rely on unhealthy vending machines or worse... doing without. Just make sure the snacks you select can withstand the trip and being banged around in your luggage.

But don't forget... extra meals, sitting for long periods, and even travel jitters can all raise your blood sugar.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Type 2 Diabetes - How Walking Lowers Your Diabetes Risk

Weight-loss experts agree that no weight-loss plan is likely to work unless it includes physical activity. Physical activity burns calories and tones your muscles. It also boosts your muscle cells' insulin sensitivity, making your body more efficient at using glucose and thereby lowering your blood sugar level. People who exercise are more successful in keeping their weight off in the long-term than people who simply watch what they eat.

When looking for a good exercise to do in order to lower your Type 2 diabetes risk, you have to look no further than walking. Why not start to become more physically active by walking even 10 minutes at first. You could then gradually build up the time and introduce simple strengthening exercises into your routine.

Recent research shows that building up to 10,000 steps per day can not only help you to control your weight, but it may also reduce your risk of developing full-blown Type 2 diabetes.

The recent study was conducted with 592 middle-aged Australian adults. The participants increased the number of steps they took during a five-year period as they built up to 10,000 steps per day. As a result, they had:

a lower body mass index,better insulin sensitivity, andless belly fat

Then their counterparts who didn't take that many steps daily during the same period of time.

Insulin resistance occurs when the body's cells can no longer respond well to the action of the hormone. Insulin assists the body in using blood sugar for energy. As the pancreas tries to compensate, it produces even more insulin. In the end, the pancreas just can't keep up with the demand which causes extra blood sugar to build up throughout the bloodstream. Now, the stage is set for Type 2 diabetes.

The good news is losing weight, especially around the abdominal area, helps to increase insulin sensitivity. This is why researchers believe walking 10,000 steps per day not only assists in weight loss, but also reduces body fat and improves the risk factors associated with Type 2 diabetes.

The easiest way to know how many steps per day you are taking is by purchasing an inexpensive pedometer. Every time you take a step, it's counted on your pedometer. You can slowly build your way up to 5000, 7500 and finally 10,000 steps per day. This is also a great way to encourage your children to be more active in this often sedentary world.

In the end, the study showed the diabetics who built up to 10,000 steps a day and continued taking that many steps, had a threefold improvement in their insulin sensitivity at the five-year mark over the other participants who only managed to increase their steps by up to only 3000 per day.

It may take some time to increase your daily step count up to 10,000, but remember you are helping to improve your health and diabetes risk factors with every single step you take. As with anything, it takes consistency and determination to get 10,000 steps on your pedometer each day. However, it will be well worth it in the end.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Tips for your diabetes diet Plan

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Article by wills Lacey

Contrary to popular belief, diabetes does not mean that you start to eat special food or to follow a complicated diabetes diet plan. Because a goal of a diet for diabetes is to maintain normal blood glucose levels, it would be useful to have reliable information on the effects of food on blood glucose. For the promotion of good diabetes health and self-management of diabetes diet plan should include regular meals and a balanced diet of the nutritious and delicious recipes.

Food

For most people, diabetes means simply by eating a variety of foods in moderate amounts and paste at the time of regular meals. If you are already eating healthy food, you will not need to do a lot of changes to keep your blood sugar (glucose) under control. Eat foods rich in fiber as grain integers and fruit and vegetables. For a greater variety, working in your favorite foods and that you have not tried before. If you skip meals or eat good food, you can meet with hypoglycemia (hypoglycemia). With a food plan, you are less likely to overeat or eat too bad food.

Guidelines

Many diabetics fight all their lives to maintain a healthy weight, but guidelines their given by the American Diabetes Association proved unnecessary in the regulation of the critical component blood sugar — the to keep diabetes under control. Nutrition experts say that there is no diet for diabetes, but people with diabetes should follow the directions of nutrition in the food pyramid, while giving particular attention to carbohydrate intake. Patients must meet a dietitian to plan a diet individualized in the General guidelines taking into account of their own health needs. The dietitian will be able to define guidelines for you to help keep you healthy.

Hook to a diabetes plan is one of the most difficult to live with diabetes. For people with diabetes, treatment for diabetes nutrition objectives are: achieve near normal blood glucose levels. To maintain your diabetes diet, it allows to identify potential obstacles and the ways to break their. Discuss your diet diabetes and your goals of treatment of diabetes with members of the family and ask for their support. When you follow your diabetes diet, you will feel better.

Type 2 Diabetes - Vital Keys To Kidney Health!

The kidneys are responsible for filtering the blood for your entire body. They are capable of removing excess fluid, as well as waste products from your system and even helping to maintain proper blood pressure. That's why it is important to know how to properly take care of them so that they will be able to sustain your needs for your entire lifetime.

Type 1 and Type 2 diabetics should be especially interested in the health of their kidneys since high blood sugar levels can cause irreparable damage to the kidneys and leave the individual with total kidney failure. Diabetic or not, when this happens in means dialysis until a transplant can be arranged.

One of the best things that you can do is limit your caffeine consumption. The kidneys do not like caffeine because it is a diuretic... which means it makes the body lose fluid unnecessarily. When this happens, it means your kidneys have to work harder than they would otherwise need to.

Many people don't realize the kidneys are the most exposed of all of the major organs. There is a thin layer between them and anything that touches your back. This is why you should always utilize protection when you are subjecting your back to jarring, bouncing and vibrating motions. Your spine and back muscles can only absorb so much: the rest falls on your delicate kidneys.

Your body is equipped to tell you when it is time to remove liquid. The problem comes when you ignore this call. Holding your urine is bad for kidneys because it is not allowing them to flush toxins and waste out like they are designed to do. Holding on to this urine means that, in time, the kidneys will actually begin to reabsorb the very poisons that they are trying so desperately to eliminate from your body.

You knew eventually we were going to get around to drinking water, so here it is. The recommended amount is 8 to 10 glasses each day. Why this specific amount? Because water is used to flush toxins and waste down through the urinary tract and into the kidneys for removal. Scientists have determined this is the ideal amount of water to successfully get this task accomplished.

When there isn't enough water present to send these toxins packing, the toxins linger in the body instead. Being trapped there, they go to work creating a whole realm of health issues. But not just any water will work: it needs to be clean and fresh to maximize the benefits.

The most serious complication of diabetes involving the urinary tract is nephropathy, which involves the kidneys. Nephropathy usually occurs in people who have had diabetes, Type 1 or Type 2, for a long time. It develops because the nephrons, small arteries in the kidneys, gradually harden.

Symptoms of nephropathy include:

swelling of the ankles, hands, face, or other body parts,loss of appetite sometimes accompanied by a metallic taste in the mouth,skin irritations,difficulty thinking clearly,fatigue, andextreme difficulty in managing your blood sugar.

Should any of these symptoms appear, do not hesitate to contact the doctor who treats your Type 2 diabetes.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments

Type 2 Diabetes - Four Tips to Help Avoid Diabetes Complications

Complications that spring from Type 2 diabetes are almost always traceable to excessive levels of sugar in the blood for many years. Complications can arise if you permit your blood sugar to rise and remain high for years. High blood sugar over a long period slowly weakens certain parts of your body, such as the eyes, kidneys, and skin. High blood sugar gradually damages the blood vessels and the nervous system, affecting parts of the body such as the feet, and even affects sexual function.

Avoiding diabetes complications is really very important for the diabetic person. Once complications start to arise, it can be very difficult to treat or even reverse Type 2 diabetes. There are all kinds of complications that can come out, from vision problems... blindness, to kidney disease, to nerve damage and much more. Diabetics are prone to bacterial infections as well. That's why it's important to manage the risk factors on a daily basis so that you can avoid these complications in the future.

Just being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes doesn't mean you have to live a life full of complications. Take the necessary steps so that you can avoid serious problems.

Here are some tips to get you started.

Monitor your blood sugar: One of the major ways a diabetic can go off track is by not monitoring their blood sugar on a regular basis. You should be checking your blood sugar levels at least twice a day, if not more. In fact, your doctor can tell you exactly how many times a day they want you to check your blood sugar and what ranges you should be in. If you let your blood sugar go for an extended period of time, you are risking complications such as high blood pressure and kidney disease.

Check your blood pressure and cholesterol levels at least annually: It's very important to keep a close check on your cholesterol and blood pressure numbers because this is a common complication of diabetes. In fact, many people die from a stroke or heart attack simply because they were not maintaining a grasp on these important levels. High blood pressure also plays a role in accelerating kidney damage. So make sure you work closely with your doctor to have these measurements checked at least once or twice each year.

Sleep well: It is true Type 2 diabetes and sleep problems go hand in hand. Diabetes can cause sleep loss, and there's evidence not sleeping well can increase the risk of a person even developing Type 2 diabetes. One reason it's important you get good quality sleep is because you will eat more sugary food or other foods that can send your blood sugar levels soaring. Why? Because you would need to get energy from somewhere when you are sleep deprived. People who get enough sleep have healthier eating habits which means their blood sugar levels are more stable.

See your doctor regularly: When you find yourself with a disease such as Type 2 diabetes, it's critical you stay in communication with your doctor on a regular basis. By having your blood sugar levels checked consistently, you will have a greater chance at making lifestyle modifications that can reverse your condition.

Monitor the most important health factors in your life, and you will have a greater chance of avoiding diabetic complications than someone who tries to just ignore everything.

To discover answers to questions you may be asking yourself about Type 2 Diabetes, click on this link... Natural Diabetes Treatments