StemCell Therapy

Racing enthusiast Walker Evans knows the toll diabetes can take.

I have relatives with it (diabetes), said Evans. I watched it when I was growing up.

So, the business entrepreneur has helped raise more than more than $60,000 to help fight the disease.

For these efforts, Evans was one of four men to be honored with a Father of the Year award at a banquet in Riverside on Wednesday.

Evans moved to Riverside in 1946. He initially worked in the construction business before discovering a passion for racing, from motorcycles to boats to off-road vehicles.

He is a member of the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame, the Riverside California Sports Hall of Fame and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. He launched Walker Evans Racing in 1977. The company employs 125 people. He retired from full-time racing in 2000.

The Father of the Year award, which recognizes men for community involvement, is a partnership between the Fathers Day Council and the American Diabetes Association. The event is held in 30 cities across the nation, with the first Inland Empire Father of the Year award being presented in 2010.

Dayna Murphy, manager of development at the American Diabetes Association, said her organization is appreciative of Evans work raising money for diabetes causes.

Having the opportunity to get to know the Evans family has been so much fun. Walker and Phyllis have built an empire together and it really shows by the incredible support the community has given them through Walker being honored, said Murphy. Walker is a legend and has passed on his drive and passion to all of his children. The American Diabetes Association and Fathers Day Council really appreciate the Evans commitment to our mission and to all people affected by diabetes.

Evans realizes the importance of raising money for diabetes research, but he admits it feels good to be recognized for his work.

Its nice to be noticed for our efforts to fight this disease, said Evans.

More:
Diabetes fundraising to the tune of $60,000 earns racing ... - Press-Enterprise

Gestational diabetes can also raise babies' risks of excessive birth weight, preterm birth, and type 2 diabetes later in life.

For this reason, it's been suggested that cold temperatures might protect against these conditions.

To study this potential connection in pregnant women, researchers looked at medical records of nearly 400,000 women living in the same urban area in Canada, in a region with wide temperature fluctuations throughout the year. Over a 12-year period, those women gave birth to more than 555,000 children.

When the researchers looked at average temperatures in the 30 days before these women gave birth, they found that the prevalence of gestational diabetes was 4.6% among those exposed to very cold temperatures (14 degrees Fahrenheit or lower), compared to 7.7% among those exposed to very hot temperatures (75 degrees Fahrenheit or higher).

That translates to a 6% to 9% relative increase in the risk of gestational diabetes for every increase of about 18 degrees Fahrenheit (or every 10 degrees Celsius), the researchers calculated.

The relationship held true even when the researchers compared two consecutive pregnancies in the same woman, which allowed them to cancel out factors such as income, ethnicity, and lifestyle habits that could also affect risk.

This may seem counterintuitive, says lead author Gillian Booth, MD, a researcher at St. Michael's Hospital and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences in Toronto, since people might think that pregnant women would spend more time outdoors and be more active during warmer months. But the findings fit a pattern of recent research on the potential protective effects of colder temperatures, she says.

And although the researchers only looked at a single geographic region in Canada, they say the results could likely apply to other parts of North American and the world.

"Based on the study's findings we would expect pregnancies in warmer climates to be at higher risk of gestational diabetes, although we weren't able to look at that directly," Dr. Booth told Health. "I think that's a great topic for future research."

The study also suggests that gestational diabetes -- and adult-onset diabetes, which shares the same risk factors -- could become increasingly prevalent worldwide as global temperatures continue to increase.

Because the study was not a randomized trial, it was unable to show a cause-and-effect relationship. The study also did not include information about body mass index, weight gain, physical activity, or diet of the women involved. But it does "offer fairly compelling evidence that air temperature may be a modifiable risk factor for gestational diabetes," says Dr. Booth.

Strategies like using air conditioning and avoiding excess layers in the summer might influence a pregnant woman's risk of gestational diabetes, says Dr. Booth.

These may be especially important for women who have strong non-modifiable risk factors for gestational diabetes, she adds, including non-European ethnicity, family history of type 2 diabetes, or a prior pregnancy with gestational diabetes.

Join the conversation

See the latest news and share your comments with CNN Health on Facebook and Twitter.

Temperature appears to have a smaller effect on gestational diabetes than these other risk factors, but "it is one factor that might be sufficient to push someone's risk over the edge," says Dr. Booth.

And while the number of women impacted globally by temperature fluctuations may be substantial, she says, the increased risk for individual women is likely small.

Staying cool during hot weather is probably a smart idea, says Dr. Booth, but women can also protect themselves from gestational diabetes by following strategies that have been proven to lower their risk -- like achieving a healthier body weight before they conceive, and avoiding excess weight gain during pregnancy by consuming a healthy diet and being physically active.

The rest is here:
Summer pregnancy may raise gestational diabetes risk - CNN

Aimee Chiavaroli achiavaroli@s-t.com

UMASS DARTMOUTH In her lab in the textiles building, Lamya Karim, assistant professor of bioengineering, showed a reporter a testing system used to break human bone samples.

The goal is to ... test how strong bone is, Karim said.

Karim received the largest National Institute of Health grant to UMass Dartmouth $616,170 to study how Type 2 diabetes weakens bones and increases risk of fractures. Also, this is the first NIH Mentored Research Scientist Career Development Award to a principal investigator at the university, officials said.

According to a news release from UMass Dartmouth, people with Type 2 diabetes are about three times as likely to break a bone than those without it, including fractures with high mortality rates such as hip fractures.

People who have diabetes actually break their bones very often, Karim said, which can be problematic, especially for older people.

Your body isnt as capable of constantly repairing the skeletal system, when it gets older versus when it was younger, she explained.

She noted people often dont know they have weak bones until they break a bone and about a quarter of people who get hip fractures die within a year due to complications.

Type 2 diabetes adds up to $245 billion in annual health care costs in the United States. Diabetes rates in the U.S. are predicted to increase up to five times by the year 2050.

About 18 percent of adults over 65 have Type 2 diabetes in Massachusetts, and about 50 percent are pre-diabetic. Bristol County has one of the highest rates of diabetes in the state, according to the news release.

The bone samples Karim is using will come from cadaver banks or from patients who are getting surgery.

In graduate school at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, Karim worked mainly in bone mechanics and had an interest in molecular properties in bone.

Trying to get the grant was a process in the making, the professor said. Karim wrote the submission for the grant with the help of Mary Bouxsein, a mentor when Karim was a post-doctorate fellow at Beth Israel Deaconess in Boston.

She will continue to be a mentor on this project, she said.

Karim, 32, started brainstorming for the project around 2013 and went through two rounds or submissions on the grant, getting feedback on how to improve. She resubmitted it about a year ago, before she began teaching at UMass Dartmouth in September.

Student to senior investigator, everyone has a role in the project, Karim said. The bulk of it will be here at UMass.

Karims goal is to find out the underlying causes of diabetic skeletal fragility.

Itll answer a small part, Karim said about the project. There could be more questions, but Karim said she thinks thats a natural part of research.

I think for a researcher its exciting to have more unanswered questions, she said I enjoy trying to explore the unknown and figure out why things are happening the way they are.

Follow Aimee Chiavaroli on Twitter@AimeeC_SCT.

More:
Cutting (research) to the bone: UMD prof to study diabetes-related skeletal fragility - SouthCoastToday.com

ViaCyte picked up $10 milliontofund the clinical development of its stem cell-derived treatment for patients who have Type 1 diabetes and are at risk of complications.

Specifically, the funds will be used to develop the companys PEC-Direct candidate, which treats diabetes by administering stem cell-derived pancreatic progenitor cells in an implantable device, according to a statement. These cells are designed to mature into human pancreatic cells, including insulin-secreting beta cells.

This treatment is intended for high-risk Type 1 diabetes patientsthose who experience severe hypoglycemic episodes, who have brittle diabetes, where blood glucose levels swing up and down, or who are less able or unable to spot symptoms of low blood sugar. ViaCyte plans to deliver the therapy alongside immune-suppressive drugs to prevent rejection.

Highrisk type 1 diabetes has been successfully treated with cadaver islet transplants, but adoption of islet transplants has been limited, due in part to the insufficient supply of donor material, said ViaCyte CEO Paul Laikind, in a statement. Because ViaCytes PEC01 cells are manufactured from pluripotent cells with unlimited proliferative potential, they can be made in vast numbers and therefore may be capable of solving the cell supply issue.

The new fundingwill also support the development of ViaCytes other candidate, the PEC-Encap, for patients who require insulin to control their diabetes. It comprises the Encaptra Cell Delivery System and the companys pancreatic progenitor cells. In addition to delivering the cells, the Encaptra device also protects the cells from the host immune response, cutting the need for immunosuppression.

The funding comes from some undisclosed investors as well as from W.L. Gore, JDRF and Asset Management Partners. San Diego-based ViaCyte partnered with Gore in in March to improve the Encaptra device.

We believe that ViaCytes capabilities in cell therapy for diabetes are the most advanced in the industry, and we are pleased to bring our material and device expertise to the challenge of developing a functional cure for insulinrequiring diabetes, said Edward Gunzel, technical leader for Gore PharmBIO Products, in the statement.

JDRF recently established a $42 million fund for Type 1 diabetes research, which will be managed separately from JDRF. The diabetes nonprofit has supported a number of other projects, including Sernovas Cell Pouch System, an implant that secretes cells that help control blood sugar, and the University of Torontos skin patch, which detects low blood sugar and automatically delivers the hormone glucagon to convert glycogen back into glucose.

Read more here:
ViaCyte bags $10M for diabetes cell therapies - FierceBiotech

An experimental foot-temperature monitoring system might one day be able to detect when diabetic patients are developing foot ulcers, a common complication that can lead to infections and amputations, a small study suggests.

Diabetic foot ulcers typically develop on the bottom of the big toe or the ball of the foot, often when people wear ill-fitting shoes. Patients with diabetes frequently have nerve damage that limits their ability to feel pain, and as a result they dont notice developing ulcers.

For the study, researchers tested a so-called smart mat designed to use variations in temperature at different points on the foot as a predictor of recurring foot ulcers in 129 patients who had this problem before. Skin temperature typically increases as ulcers develop.

When the study team tested for variations of 2.22 degrees Celsius (about 4 degrees Fahrenheit), they found the smart mat correctly identified 97 percent of foot ulcers observed by clinicians. But it also had a false positive rate of 57 percent, meaning clinicians didnt find ulcers identified by the mat.

With a larger temperature variation of 3.20 degrees Celsius (about 5.75 degrees Fahrenheit), the false positive rate dropped to 32 percent, but the proportion of correctly identified foot ulcers also declined to 70 percent, researchers report in Diabetes Care.

If we look at this technology as a risk stratification tool with high feasibility to be used at home on daily basis, it could be hugely beneficial to target those who are truly at risk, said senior study author Dr. Bijan Najafi, a researcher at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

I dont think the point is having a system with no false-alarm, Najafi said by email.

The device in the study was developed by Podimetrics Inc. in Somerville, Massachusetts, and its approved for sale in the U.S. for the periodic evaluation of temperature variations in the soles of the feet for signs of inflammation. Podimetrics sponsored the study of the mat for predicting diabetic foot ulcers.

In the current experiment, patients used the mat in much the same way they might use a common bathroom scale. Every day, they stepped on it and waited 20 seconds while it measured temperatures at different points on the soles of the feet, then the device wirelessly transmitted the temperature data to servers managed by Podimetrics. The data were saved and analyzed for variations in foot temperature that might signal developing ulcers.

In total, the trial ran 34 weeks, and 37 participants developed 53 foot ulcers during the study period.

For both of the temperature variation settings tested in the study, the mat correctly identified developing ulcers an average of 37 days before they were detected by a doctor.

That lead time might help patients schedule clinic visits and get treatment for ulcers sooner, when theyre easier to treat and less likely to lead to serious complications, Najafi said.

The study wasnt designed to determine whether the mat actually reduced the development of ulcers or curbed costs to treat these ulcers, the authors note. Researchers only followed patients for 60 days, and its possible the rate of false positives or accurately identified ulcers might look different over a longer period of time.

In addition, the study only included patients with a history of diabetic foot ulcers, and the results might be different for people with diabetes who have never had this problem before, the authors point out.

While the high rate of false positives in the study suggests that the device still needs more testing and refinement, the technology holds a lot of potential to aid patients who currently have a high risk of infection and amputation because their developing ulcers go undetected, said Dr. David Armstrong, director of the Southern Arizona Limb Salvage Alliance at the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson.

Whats really attractive about this technology is that it is probably going to get smarter, Armstrong, who wasnt involved in the study, said by email. This technology is probably going to personalize a heat signature for every patient and identify a hot spot for each patient.

SOURCE: bit.ly/2rAPZz6 Diabetes Care, April 29, 2017.

WASHINGTON U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Wednesday he does not yet know how Republicans will amass the votes needed to pass legislation now being crafted to dismantle Obamacare, but expressed some optimism on another top priority, overhauling the tax code.

LONDON GW Pharmaceuticals is set to file its cannabis-derived drug with U.S. regulators imminently, following publication of detailed data on its success in fighting severe childhood epilepsy.

Eating a small amount of chocolate every week or so may decrease the risk of a common and serious type of irregular heart rhythm, according to a new study of people in Denmark.

See the article here:
Foot mat may help predict who will get a common diabetes complication - Reuters

Type 2 diabetes can wreak havoc on your health. While lifestyle changes can help keep diabetes under control, many patients require oral medications or insulin injections as forms of treatment, too. Watch the video for how diabetes affects your body. Time

Pharmaceuticals maker Roche introduced a new blood glucose monitoring system called Accu-Chek Guide, paired with a savings card that allows patients to get the device for free as well as discounted test strips.(Photo: Roche)

Pharmaceuticals maker Roche overhauled its blood glucose monitoring system and introduced a new discounting offer that it says could save uninsured diabetics by thousands of dollars per year.

The move could help alleviate political pressure as the drug industry faces mounting scrutiny over prices. It also comes amid increasing competition among blood glucose monitoring makers as diabetes rates rise.

The new system pairs a free blood glucose meter with a smartphone app and discounted test strips. With some diabetics paying as much as $2 a strip for other offerings, the new Roche system paired with a free savings card could cut costs to as little as 40 cents per strip in the first 50-count box, then 20 cents per strip in subsequent boxes.

The nation's 29-million diabetics pay widely varying prices for testing products, in part because many of them are covered by insurance. Roches' move is likely to provide the biggest help to the uninsured.The average American diabetic paid $1,922 in out-of-pocket expenses for care in 2013, compared to $738 for someone without the condition,according to the Health Care Cost Institute.

For "the average patient, managing diabetes and acquiring all of the testing and therapy supplies can be very difficult to navigate, really complex and very often very expensive," said Brad Moore, head of Rochediabetes care in North America.

The new system offers a spill-resistant vial, a larger blood application area on upgraded strips and a light on the strip port for improved visibility when testing. The device wirelessly transmits data through Bluetooth technology to a free smartphone app that logs data.

Moore said Roche technicians worked on the new Accu-Chek Guide Systemfor at least three years, including a "very significant investment in capital."

Test strips read by devices to monitor blood glucose data are typically a significant source of profit for the pharmaceutical industry, which is under fire for its contribution to increasing health care costs. President Trump has threatened to battle drug companies over costs, while many Washington lawmakers have decried health care's effect on the average American's budget.

Although industryprices can be more than $2per strip, manufacturing costs don't typically top 15 cents, DiabeticInvestor.com analyst David Kliff told Diabetes Forecast magazine in 2012.

Roche had 8.5% market share in the blood glucose monitoring industry, trailing only Johnson & Johnson at 22.5%, according to an October 2016 report by market-research firm IBISWorld analystJonathan DeCarlo.

But competition is increasing, as big-box retail chains Target and Walmart and other retailers have introduced low-cost, private-label options. Consequently, the blood glucose monitoring industry's profit as a percentage of revenue was projected to fall from 10.1% in 2015 to 9.5% in 2016, IBISWorld'sDeCarlo estimated.

Moore declined to discuss the profitability of Roche's new test strips, which contain a new chemical makeup.

"We knew that access was a problem. We heard that from our patients," Moore said. "So the timing was perfect in that weve developed a new technology platform that the Accu-Chek Guide System is based on."

Meanwhile, drug companies are under pressure to shield patients from increasing costs, though they often blame insurers and other health care intermediaries for saddling patients with additional expenses.

With a free savings card available online, through pharmacies and at health care centers, the new Roche monitoring meter is free, the first box of 50 test strips is $19.99 and all additional boxesare $10.That's cheaper than major competitors atAmazon, Rite Aid, Walgreens, CVS and Walmart with the exception of the ReliOn Prime option at Walmart, according to data collected by USA TODAY.

Most options are more than $40 for a box, with some significantly more expensive. Accu-Chek's previous box of Aviva Plus strips ranged from $44.99 at Amazon to $109.99 at Walgreens.

The average patient tests once a day but some must test eight to 10 times a day. At those rates, savings from typical diabetes tests could range from hundreds to several thousands of dollars per year.

A recent study commissioned by Roche of 500 U.S. adults living with diabetes found that 58% "cut corners" to save money in their daily testing regiment, including by skipping tests.

Contributing: Diana Kruzman

Follow USA TODAY reporter Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey.

Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2rS9AYg

Visit link:
Roche: Diabetes patients could save thousands with new blood ... - USA TODAY

Patch.com

UT-Austin Researchers Seek to Prevent Diabetes in At-Risk Population Patch.com AUSTIN, TX Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin and The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Public Health have received a $2.9 million, five-year award from the National Institute of Diabetes and ...

See more here:
UT-Austin Researchers Seek to Prevent Diabetes in At-Risk Population - Patch.com

The possible complications posed by diabetesheart disease and damage to eyes, feet, nerves and so forthare fairly familiar to the general public. But in recent years, scientists have been scrutinizing a risk that is both less well known and less understoodthe heightened likelihood of dementia.

Researchers have known for several years about diabetes and the higher risk of vascular dementia, the second most common kind. In ways, it seems only logical: Vascular dementia is caused by damaged blood vessels in the brain, just as diabetes hardens blood vessels elsewhere.

The latest research is focused on Alzheimers disease, the most common neurodegenerative disorder and one for which its harder to figure out the precise relationship with diabetes. On this much, many scientists agree: The rate of Alzheimers disease could be cut by close to half if diabetes could be abolished. The connection between the two is so strong that Suzanne M. de la Monte, one of the top researchers in the field, has said that many cases of Alzheimers could be dubbed Type 3 diabetes.

People who havent necessarily developed diabetes might still develop insulin resistance in the brain, said de la Monte, a professor of neurosurgery, pathology and laboratory medicine at Brown University. Thats why she uses the term Type 3 diabetesone doesnt necessarily cause the other. But in both cases, she said, people show certain markers at the cellular level.

Growing evidence supports the concept that Alzheimers disease is fundamentally a metabolic disease with molecular and biochemical features that correspond with diabetes mellitus and other peripheral insulin resistance disorders, de la Monte wrote in 2014 in the journal Biochemical Pharmacology.But the picture is more complicated than that, she wrote, because Alzheimers can occur as a separate disease process, or arise in association with systemic insulin resistance diseases, including diabetes, obesity, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

A 2015 pilot study published in the Journal of Alzheimers Disease found that doses of nasal insulinbypassing the blood/brain barriersignificantly improved memory in people with early Alzheimers disease and mild cognitive impairment. A larger, five-year clinical trial is now underway.

Inflammatory response appears to play a role, de la Monte said. Both diabetes and Alzheimers are inflammatory diseases. And yet, other forms of brain inflammation are not associated with cognitive problems later on.

Multiple sclerosis, encephalitis, none of these lead to dementia, she said. What is the cause of all this, where is the problem? Because Alzheimers disease was not that common before. We can link a lot of the extra cases to diabetes and obesity. So if we have that, is it just because people are fatter? I dont think its just that. But then if you talk about metabolic syndrome, fatty liver, PCOS, infertilityhow many diseases are linked to the same problem of insulin resistance and an inflammatory process?

People need a lot more help in learning how to stave off Type 2 diabetes and other metabolic diseases through diet and exercise, de la Monte said. And because testing can find the same precursor conditions for both brain insulin-resistance and diabetes, theres reason to think more people should be screened earlier, with these more sensitive tests.

Melissa Schilling, a professor at the New York University Stern School of Business, came to a similar conclusion after conducting a review of the relationship between diabetes and Alzheimers.

Her 2016 paper in the Journal of Alzheimers Disease estimated that 40% of all Alzheimers cases were connected to hyperinsulinemia, or excess levels of insulin relative to glucose in the blood. That would include not just people with diabetes but the 86 million Americans estimated by the CDC to have prediabetes.

If we can raise awareness and get more people tested for hyperinsulinemia it could significantly lessen the incidence of Alzheimers disease and vascular dementia, as well as other diabetes-related health problems. Schilling said in a press release.

Research by Margaret Gatz, a professor of psychology at USC, further refined the relationship between the two. She and fellow researchers in Sweden found that not only was diabetes strongly associated with dementia, but that people who are first diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in middle age, rather than after age 65, are at much higher risk. And that finding was independent of how long people had diabetes before developing dementiain other words, it was the age at diagnosis, not how long they lived with diabetes, that determined their risk.

At this point, Gatz is particularly interested in the role that stress might play in the equation.

One theory is Ive been intrigued by involves the HPA (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal) axis, she said. The HPA axis controls the immune system, digestionand reactions to stress. Its what fires when someone is stressed, Gatz said. After its heavily activated, it might potentiate diabetes and hippocampal damage, inflammation and oxidative damage.

Maybe this whole stress process is basically inflammatory damage, oxidative damage.

She agreed that earlier, more sensitive testing might warn people away from the kind of eating and sedentary habits that can cause prediabetes and diabetes. Stress management might be part of the picture, too, she suggests.

Im heavily a physical exercise proponent. When people ask me, Whats the biggest thing I can do to avoid dementia? my answer is exercise. But also workplaces are more stressful, people describe themselves as not handling stress as well. All of these are risk factors.

At Brown, de la Monte is planning to publish a paper that looks at what kinds of testing might best be used as early indicators of future dementia. Were looking at peripheral markers that indicate brain disease, she said. If you look at blood, can you find evidence of inflammation in people who have no inflammatory disease but they have mild cognitive impairment and they also have markers of insulin resistance? We can pick out from that who is at risk. At least to inform them so they can start using lifestyle measures.

Karin Klein is a freelance journalist based in Southern California who specializes in writing about health and medicine, education, environment and food. For 27 years, she covered those topics at the Los Angeles Times as an editor and editorial writer. Karin is a graduate of Wellesley College, where she majored in linguistics, and she studied journalism at UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism. When she's not writing, she's usually found on hiking trails and is the author of an interpretive hiking book, "50 Hikes in Orange County." Follow her on Twitter athttps://twitter.com/kklein100

Read the original post:
The Alarming Diabetes-Alzheimer's Connection - A Sweet Life (blog)

Northwest Wyoming now claims one of only two health care professionals in the state who holds a certification in Advanced Diabetes Management. West Park Hospitals Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, Liz Fabrizio, has passed the boards for Advanced Diabetes Management from the American Association of Diabetes Educators. Thats an important resource, considering that the adult diabetes rate has almost doubled in Wyoming in the last 15 years. According to West Park Hospital Public Relations Director Ashley Trudo, Fabrizios certification supports her advanced level of knowledge and ability to manage complex patient needs while assisting patients with therapeutic problem-solving. http://dehayf5mhw1h7.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/761/2017/05/24091827/Trudo-Diabetes-Specialist.mp3 In just 15 years, the adult diabetes rate rose from 4.5 percent in 2001 to 8.4 percent in 2016. Christine Revere, Chronic Disease Prevention Program manager with the Wyoming Department of Health, said the trend is not surprising when considered along with several risk factors linked with type 2 diabetes. 65 percent of Wyoming adults are obese or overweight, 83 percent dont eat enough fruits and vegetables, 25 percent engage in no daily physical activity, and 21 percent smoke cigarettes. Uncontrolled diabetes can result in medical difficulties such as blindness, kidney disease and nerve damage. Diabetes is also an important risk factor for heart disease and stroke.

Continued here:
Diabetes Specialist Now at West Park Hospital - mybighornbasin

LIHUE Malia Bever is no stranger to Type 1 diabetes.

The Koloa teen was 4 years old when she was diagnosed, after her mom noticed Malias eating patterns and weight had changed.

During the next few years, there were ups and downs as the family adjusted to her diagnosis and navigated the questions that came with it.

Theres this sort of angry stage people go through after theyre diagnosed, and that happened with me when I was younger, Bever said. Ive experienced every stage of it, up to now.

The Southern California native is now 17. She moved to Kauai with her family in 2014. She was involved in Type 1 diabetes-centered youth outreach programs in California, and shes still using her time in Hawaii to find ways to connect people who have been diagnosed.

In 2016, Bever started a support group for people with Type 1 diabetes on Kauai, focused on connecting teens and tweens. She held a summer bash that year, and is repeating the Type 1 Kauai Family Retreat at Makanalani Estates in Kilauea June 9-11. It is free.

The retreat is about being together with people like you, Bever said. We share our stories and we have some information about Type 1 diabetes, because for the longest time I didnt even really know what it was.

One story Bever shares is getting a service dog when she was 9 as a way to help manage the emotional swings and changes in her body.

Everything got a little easier when we got Nick Jonas thats his name, Bever said. He used to go everywhere with me, but now he stays home quite a bit.

She said its important for kids with the diagnosis to know about tricks to live well with Type 1 diabetes, like getting a service animal.

In 2010, Bever attended Camp Sweeney in Texas. Thats where she got the inspiration for the Kauai retreat, which is her own smaller-scale version.

The Texas camp convenes each year for three weeks. Its a traditional summer camp with games, arts and crafts, and a paddle out, all for kids with Type 1 diabetes. But it also has medical staff and trained dietitians, so kids can focus on fun.

Its such an epic camp, Bever said.

For the Kauai retreat, Bever is including everyone in the family.

Bevers mom, Jessica, and grandmother, Diana, will be lending a hand with the event, and will share how they coped with Malias diagnosis as shes grown up.

My mom let me go to sleepovers and stuff, Bever said. A lot of kids with Type 1 dont get to do that kind of stuff because of the insulin, but she let me be more free.

In addition to Makanalanis open space with donkeys, sheep and horses, Bever plans to set up a slip-n-slide and have an evening where adults and kids can play separately.

Last year, we had a movie night downstairs and a nice dinner for the adults upstairs, Bever said. Were going to do something like that this year, too.

Info: email type1kauai@ yahoo.com or call 278-8765.

Read the original:
Type 1 diabetes group throws bash - Thegardenisland.com

With Promising Potential

No matter how modern the world has become, there are certain ailments that continue to persist. One of these is diabetes, and according to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are now over 422 million people in the world suffering from it. Generally characterized as a problem in blood sugar levels, diabetes has two variants an insulin-dependent one, known as type 1 diabetes (T1D), and type 2 diabetes thats non-insulin-dependent.

In the United States, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation reports that about 1.25 million people have T1D. The cause of this particular diabetes variant still remains unknown, and treatments generally involve pumping insulin daily into the patients body. As such, theres still no known cure for T1D. However, researchers from the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine in Florida may have just made it possible to develop one.

In a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the researchers described how clinical trials involving pancreatic islet cell implants to the omentum the tissue covering organs in the abdomen shows promise in treating T1D. Islet transplantation can restore euglycemia and eliminate severe hypoglycemia in patients with [T1D], the researchers wrote. The omentum has a dense vascularized surface for islet implantation, drains into the portal system, and is easily accessible.

Pancreatic islets are endocrine cell clusters found throughout the organ, which is normally involved with insulin and glucagon production in healthy individuals. The researchers found that using donor islets combined with a T1D patients own blood plasma makes for effective islet implants into the omentum. This works better than previous attempts to implant islets in the liver, which could cause inflammation. The omentum then becomes sort of a mini-pancreas that could produce insulin for T1D patients. The results thus far have shown that the omentum appears to be a viable site for islet implantation using this new platform technique, lead author David Baidal told Endgadget.

The patients involved in the clinical trials were weaned off from their usual dose of insulin 17 days after the transplant. Their glucose levels subsequently showed improvements. At 12 months, in response to a 5-hour mixed-meal tolerance test, the 90-minute glucose level was 266 mg per deciliter (14.6 mmol per liter); this level decreased to 130 mg per deciliter (7.1 mmol per liter) at 300 minutes, according to the study.

While this isnt the only research out there that tries to solve the problem of diabetes, its certainly the first thats given patients a steady supply of insulin from inside their bodies, setting them free from their insulin injections. Similar studies have also been conducted to remove the dependence of type 2 diabetes patients from their usual medicines.

It would still take some time, however, before the actual feasibility of this treatment is determined. Data from our study and long-term follow up of additional omental islet transplants will determine the safety and feasibility of this strategy of islet transplantation, but we are quite excited about what we are seeing now, Baidal said.

Read more:
A New Clinical Trial Just Made Diabetes Patients Insulin Independent - Futurism

Question: How can a blood test determine if I have prediabetes? How much weight do I need to lose to bring my numbers down?

Answer: Doctors typically perform one of three blood tests to diagnose prediabetes, a condition marked by blood sugar (glucose) levels that are higher than normal but not high enough to qualify as diabetes. While prediabetes often leads to full-fledged Type 2 diabetes, many people can hold the condition in check if they lose a relatively small amount of weight and increase their physical activity, said Dr. Rhonda Bentley-Lewis, an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

I stress to my patients that were not talking about a huge amount of weight. Just 5 to 7 percent of ones body weight she said. Thats 10 to 14 pounds for someone who weighs 200 pounds.

Two of the tests require fasting, which helps prevent results being distorted by a prior meal and provides an even baseline, Bentley-Lewis said.

One, the fasting plasma glucose test, checks blood glucose levels after an 8 to 10 hour fast; results of 100 to 125 milligrams per deciliter indicate prediabetes. The other, the oral glucose tolerance test, is the most sensitive. It checks blood glucose levels after fasting and then two hours after you consume a sweetened drink; levels of 140 to 199 after the drink indicate prediabetes.

A third test, the A1C test, may be the most convenient because it doesnt require fasting. It measures your average blood glucose levels over the past two to three months; results of 5.7 percent to 6.4 percent, which indicate the percentage of red blood cells that have glucose attached to them, indicate prediabetes.

Though doctors often repeat a test to confirm a diabetes diagnosis, they do not always do so for a prediabetes diagnosis, Bentley-Lewis said.

Doctors can treat prediabetes with medication, but many patients prefer to try weight loss and exercise first, she said.

Among thousands of people with prediabetes who participated in a national study called the Diabetes Prevention Program, those who received counseling about lifestyle changes, like losing a modest amount of weight, stepping up physical activity and reducing the amount of fat and calories in their diets, were able to reduce their risk of developing diabetes by 58 percent.

Roni Caryn Rabin writes for The New York Times.

Go here to read the rest:
How much weight should you shed to avoid diabetes? - The San Diego Union-Tribune

Tragic Tommy Green died in his sleep. (Picture by Facebook)

People from across the the world are dabbing for a 21-year-old Bury St Edmunds student who died in his sleep last week.

Kind-hearted type 1 diabetes sufferer Tommy Green went to sleep with a stomach bug but unexpectedly fell into severe hypoglycemia, which is extremely low blood sugar levels, during the night.

The Nottingham Trent University student did not wake up from his sleep.

Friendsurged people to dab, a dance craze which started in America, toboost awareness of the potentially fatal condition and to raise money for charities searching for a cure.

Type 1 diabetes, which is distinct form type 2, is believed to affect more than 400,000 people in the UK.

A friend of the student said: At the weekend, one of our type 1 heroes was lost.

Tommy was a kind-hearted university student who was sleeping off a simple tummy bug but sadly never woke up, a fear for so many in the type 1 community and sadly a reality for this family.

Type 1 families will come together, candles will be lit, prayers will be said and T1 families will be dabbing in memory of Tommy.

His mother Jo Green, who lives in Dubai, said: Thank you all so much you are all completely amazing. We are staggered by your wonderful support. We are lifted to think this is raising awareness for diabetes.

Hundreds of people have posted photos of themselves doing the now-famous dab move using the hashtag #dab4tommy.

Tommys friend Russell Edge posted: Tom was my very best friend the kindest soul. We miss him every day.

MORE: Ouch! Its 10 years since Charlie bit his brother

MORE: Tolkiens great-grandson completes bucket list set by his dying brother

Originally posted here:
Tragic student who died in his sleep inspires 'dabbing for Diabetes' - Metro

by The Press and Standard | May 20, 2017 5:00 am

Last Updated: May 17, 2017 at 12:27 pm

By JULIE HOFF

widdleswife@aol.com

Cameron Shephard has Type 1 juvenile diabetes, but it doesnt have her.

She tackles the disease with matter-of-fact confidence, and has since she was diagnosed at age 7.

Cameron, now 13, is the daughter of David and Lisa Shephard of Givhans. Lisa is a nurse at Colleton Medical Center.

Theres no family medical history [of diabetes] whatsoever, as far back as we know, Lisa said. Cameron has two older brothers, Kaleb and Blake, neither of whom has diabetes.

Cameron, who attends Gregg Middle School in Summerville, doesnt let the disease slow her down. Shes maintained a place on the honor roll while taking advanced classes in elementary and middle school. Shes in the Gifted And Talented Education (GATE) program and a member of the Junior Beta Club. She plays tennis at Gregg, and I like to play outside with my brother Blake basketball or football, she said.

In the six years since her diagnosis, Cameron has had more than 15,000 needle injections and eight hypoglycemic seizures, Lisa said.

Counting carbs and testing her blood sugar several times a day is just a fact of life, and she doesnt complain.

She does great with it. She never lets it get her down, Lisa said

I dont really remember before [the diagnosis], Cameron said. Its just my life.

Lisa became an advocate for diabetes research and education. She and Cameron met with Congressmen James E. Clyburn and Mark Sanford and participated in a 100-mile fundraising bike ride to benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. In addition, Cameron has organized a JDRF Walk Team for five years.

Now Cameron has been selected to represent South Carolina in the JDRF Childrens Congress this summer in Washington, D.C. Approximately 1,500 youths applied for 155 slots, Lisa said. Two other S.C. delegates, from Greenville and Columbia, were also selected.

They fill out an application and write a letter to their congressman, and they look at their grades and any work theyve done to support advocacy and research, Lisa said.

During the Congress, which is held every other year, kids learn leadership skills, make friends and talk to elected leaders about the importance of government funding for juvenile diabetes research.

Cameron began to exhibit classic symptoms of the disease at age six. She was drinking a lot of fluids and having to use the bathroom constantly. Then she started getting extremely sleepy we were in denial, Lisa said.

They went to Dr. Benjamin Rogers at Edisto Pediatrics, and I packed a suitcase for her before we even left. I knew she wasnt coming back home that night, Lisa said. When Cameron was weighed, her parents realized how much weight shed lost. And her blood sugar was over 800 dangerously high.

Rogers sent the family to the Medical University of South Carolina, where Cameron quickly learned the routines associated with her disease.

Before we even left the hospital she was able to stick her own finger and get her blood sugar numbers, Lisa said.

Today Cameron checks her blood sugar three or four times a day. She wears a device called a CGM, a continuous glucose monitor, which downloads her blood sugar levels every five minutes to her phone.

Every three or four days, we have to change the insulin pump to a new site, and once a week we change CGM sites, Lisa said. The pump constantly infuses insulin 24 hours a day. It tells her if she needs insulin or not. When she eats, she has to count how many carbs shes eating and she has to enter those numbers into the pump.

None of it fazes Cameron. Shes focused on two things: Finding a cure for those who have been diagnosed, and early diagnosis for those who have it.

We are very proud of Cameron for being selected to represent our state, and of how well she lives with this chronic disease that has no days off, Lisa said.

Visit link:
Local girl tapped for diabetes event | News | The Press and Standard - Walterboro Live

Yadira Lopez @yadiralopezht

The number of K-12 students with diabetes in Sarasota County schools has increased by 50 percent since 2011, according to figures from the Florida Department of Health in Sarasota County.

In 2011, 83 students were identified as diabetic in county schools. That number jumped to 128 in the current school year. The steadily growing rate has put increased pressure on school health services, said Suzanne DuBose, a registered nurse and supervisor of health services in Sarasota County schools.

Having a student with diabetes frequently increases the number of health room visits since these students typically visit the school clinic two to three times per day, DuBose said.

Type 1 diabetics, who make up the bulk of the countys diabetic students, require lifelong daily insulin injections. In schools, the shots are required to be administered by registered nurses. But Sarasota County does not have a full-time RN at every school, relying instead on RNs that travel throughout the district.

There are few recent studies on the prevalence of diabetes in kids, but according to the National Institutes of Health, as obesity rates in children continue to soar, type 2 diabetes, a disease that used to be seen primarily in adults age 45 and older, is becoming more prevalent among children.

A study funded by the Centers for Disease Control and the NIH found a 20 percent jump in type 2 cases between 2001 and 2009. Researchers called the increase substantial, and most experts agree that growth is due to weight and sedentary lifestyles.

While studies have shown an increase in the number of children diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, most researchers agree that there is no single cause, DuBose said. Genetics plays a role, but exposure to certain environmental factors may also trigger the disease.

The most important thing parents can do is to watch for symptoms of type 1 diabetes such as frequent urination, thirst and weight loss, she added. The earlier its detected, the better.

Read the original here:
Diabetes steadily increasing in Sarasota schools - Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Richard Fink was an All-High first baseman who weighed about 165 pounds when he played for the Bennett High School baseball team during the mid-1970s. He spent the 1980s and 90s playing Muni and suburban hardball with teams based near his Getzville home, as well as pickup basketball up to three times a week.

Im very competitive, he said.

Fink, 62, has worked the last three decades as a legal process server. Over the years, he spent a growing amount of time behind a desk or the wheel of a car. He ate lots of food on the go and enjoyed his share of the standard Buffalo diet: breakfast sandwiches, chicken wings and pizza.

The nearly 6-foot-tall Fink weighed 215 pounds when a case of pneumonia knocked him off his feet for two months early last year. He packed on another 15 pounds as he recovered.

Meanwhile, his blood sugar level crept into the diabetes range.

Ive played sports my whole life, so when youre diagnosed with diabetes its a shock, he said.

[BELOW: Diabetes ABCs, key prediabetes and diabetes test levels]

Fink was not at all comfortable joining the legion of 115 million Americans roughly one in three with diabetes or prediabetes. His primary care doctor put him on the oral medication Metformin and helped him understand the dangers unaddressed high blood sugar levels can bring: poor circulation that boosts the risk of blindness and kidney failure, heart attack, stroke and limb amputation.

Fink was floored.

If scientists tell you that you can go blind looking at the sun during an eclipse, you dont look. Its an immediate reaction, he said. But if it comes down to eating or other choices, its OK, because nothing happens immediately to you. But then, 20 years later, that accumulation of poor eating habits and behavior, it catches up with you. The bill comes due.

Fink decided to beat back diabetes. Heres how.

Start with a plan

Richard Fink, left, pledged to amp up his weekly workout regimen and change his diet after he was diagnosed with diabetes. (Robert Kirkham/Buffalo News)

Fink started his Type 2 diabetic journey last spring after lab tests showed his fasting blood sugar level at 338 milligrams per deciliter, more than three times the normal level. His A1C reading an average blood sugar percentage over two to three months stood at 7.2, also in the diabetes range.

The best thing someone can do when they get diagnosed with diabetes or prediabetes is to lose weight, he said. Its the essential key to ridding yourself of diabetes.

[RELATED: Type 1 diabetic from WNY touts little-used inhalable insulin]

Fink had long been interested in the training regimens of top athletes, even though he didnt always follow them himself, so he started from a place he understood: He needed to burn off more calories than he consumed.

Research shows that losing 15 percent of your body weight can lower the risk of Type 2 diabetes by more than 50 percent, according to the American Diabetes Association.

That kind of weight loss needed to start with a new mental approach, Fink reasoned. He started to make better, more educated health and fitness choices going forward every day and not get too discouraged if he slipped up occasionally.

The problem most people have is they want instant gratification, he said. You dont get out of shape overnight. You dont get in shape overnight. Its a process.

Nutrition is key

A Mediterranean diet including plenty of chicken and fish has been part of Richard Fink's nutrition plan. (Robert Kirkham/Buffalo News)

Diet and exercise has to be part of any diabetic regime, no matter what, said Dr. Howard Lippes, a Williamsville endocrinologist.

Fink was determined to add more exercise to his weekly regimen. For him, the remnants of his past made this the easier part. The more important thing to remember is that you cannot out-train a bad diet, he said.

He pretty much knew how to eat right, but the new numbers in his life underlined that he didnt make the best choices often enough. He turned decidedly to a Mediterranean diet. He gave up cereal, white breads and other processed foods made with simple carbohydrates and added sugars. Simple carbs as opposed to their more complex kin, found mostly in vegetables raise blood sugar levels, which promote body inflammation that fuels many chronic diseases, including diabetes, the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S.

Fink fed his better habits with information gleaned from books, magazines and (shameful plug intended) WNY Refresh. He tends to eat eggs for breakfast, a light, chicken-based meal for lunch and dinners rich in chicken, fish, fruits and vegetables. He drinks plenty of water. He has never smoked anything and doesnt drink alcohol, which in excess also promotes disease.

Do I still love wings? Absolutely, he said. Do I still have them once in a while? Sure, but I have changed to a lot of healthy eating. You need to have chicken and fish and salads, and be careful on dressings and toppings. Youve got to read labels, too. I never thought I needed to. The more informed you can become, the better.

Exercise counts

Each member who takes group classes at Orangetheory wears a heart rate monitor to let them know when they approach their maximum heart rate. (Robert Kirkham/Buffalo News)

There are plenty of days I dont want to work out, Fink said, but those are the days that are most important. You have to force yourself to do what you need to do to burn calories, and drive by places where you shouldnt be eating.

[RELATED STORY: Falls Memorial studies new wound treatment]

Fink turned to Orangetheory in Amherst to burn calories. He takes a late afternoon class five to six days a week in which workouts vary, keeping things interesting and targeting different muscle groups. Trainers help guide his fitness and exercise form during hourlong workouts split between challenging treadmill work and circuit training that includes rowing machines, free weights and TRX resistance bands. The workouts focus on splat points one point for every minute in the Orange zone, 84 to 90 percent of your maximum heart rate. You want you to get 12 to 20 points per session to develop an afterburn that keeps you shedding calories for a day or so after your workout.

When I go for my workout, I burn 800, 900 calories, Fink said, so technically, after my workout, I havent eaten because Ive burned off breakfast and lunch.

Your heart is a muscle that Fink compares to a Lamborghini. If you walk every day, thats good, but its like driving that car at 25 miles an hour, he said. Youve got to open that up, raise that heart rate every once in a while, to make sure youre working it.

Its important to check with your doctor before starting an exercise routine.

A new way of life

Fink has learned since last spring that hard, consistent work can pay off. Being healthy is a second job, he said.

He has lost 30 pounds since last year and his A1C level is down to 5.4 below the prediabetic and diabetic range. He is taking a quarter the dose of his original diabetes prescription and looks to soon get off it completely. He aims to stay this way.

You cant say, I got rid of it, so I can eat doughnuts again. You dont want to do that, he said. You can blow a whole workout with foods like that. You have to combine exercise with diet. People say they cant lose weight. Dont say you cant. Say youre not going to make the effort. If youre not making the effort, who are you cheating?

The ABCs of diabetes

Type 1 diabetes:Normally diagnosed in children and young adults. The body does not produce insulin, a hormone needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy the bodys cells need for daily life. Only 5 percent of people with diabetes have this form of the disease, which is treated with insulin therapy.

Type2diabetes:Almost 30 million Americans have Type 1 or 2 diabetes; Type 2 is by far the most common form. The body does not produce enough insulin, or the cells ignore the insulin, and glucose builds up in the bloodstream instead.

It is more common as a percentage among African-Americans, Latinos, Native Americans and Asian Americans. Roughly one in four Americans age 65 and older has diabetes.

More than 80 percent of those with Type 2 diabetes are overweight.

Complications, which can vary widely and by degree, include glaucoma, cataracts and other eye problems; numbness in the feet; skin infections and skin disorders; hearing loss; depression; and high blood pressure, which raises your risk for heart attack, stroke and kidney disease.

High blood sugar can overwork the kidneys, causing them to stop working properly. When diagnosed early, kidney disease can be slowed with treatment; when diagnosed later, kidney failure usually results.

Prediabetes:An estimated 86 million Americans have prediabetes. Before people develop Type 2 diabetes, they almost always have prediabetes, or blood glucose levels that are higher than normal but not yet high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes.

Recent research has shown that some long-term damage to the body, especially the heart and circulatory system, may already be occurring during prediabetes.

Key tests

A1C: Measures the average blood sugar (glucose) level percentage over 2-3 months.

Results of A1C:

Normal:less than 5.7 percent

Prediabetes:5.7 to 6.4 percent

Diabetes:6.5 percent or higher

Fasting Plasma Glucose: Levels of milligrams per deciliter of blood glucose after fasting at least 8 hours.

Results of FPG:

Normal:less than 100 mg/dl

Prediabetes:100-125 mg/dl

Diabetes:126 mg/dl or higher

Oral Glucose Tolerance Test: Levels of milligrams per deciliter before and 2 hours after a sweet drink; most often used to test for diabetes during pregnancy.

Results of OCTT:

Normal:less than 140 mg/dl

Prediabetes:140-129 mg/dl

Diabetes:200 mg/dl or higher

Prevention and treatment

Exercise and a healthy diet are key to preventing prediabetes and diabetes, as well as better managing them. (Robert Kirkham/Buffalo News)

Regular exercise and a healthy diet void of processed foods can help.

Smoking, high blood pressure, abnormal blood cholesterol levels, being overweight and being sedentary can worsen diabetes.

Medications and dialysis are treatments that may be required.

Sources: American Diabetes Association (diabetes.org), Seneca Nation of Indians Diabetes Foundation

Resourcesfrom the Buffalo & Erie County Public Libraries

What to Expect When You Have Diabetes: 170 tips for living well with diabetes, American Diabetes Association

Whole Cooking & Nutrition: An everyday superfoods approach to planning, cooking, and eating with diabetes, Katie Cavuto

Your Type 2 Diabetes Action Plan: Tips, techniques, and practical advice for living well with diabetes, American Diabetes Association

The Diabetes Reset: Avoid it, control it, even reverse it a doctors scientific program, George King

Diabetes Without Drugs: The 5-step program to control blood sugar naturally and prevent diabetes complications, Suzy Cohen

For more information, visit buffalolib.org.

email: refresh@buffnews.com

Twitter: @BNrefresh, @ScottBScanlon

Go here to read the rest:
Floored by diabetes diagnosis, Richard Fink fought back - Buffalo News

Youths who received any breastfeeding for at least 12 months or full breastfeeding for at least six months had lower odds of developing type 1 diabetes.

Data was evaluated from two population-based cohorts on 155,392 children followed from birth (1996-2009) to 2014 (Danish National Birth Cohort) or 2015 (Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study) to determine the relationship between the duration of full or any breastfeeding and the risk for type 1 diabetes in children. Infant dietary practices were reported by parents when children were ages 6 and 18 months. The outcome was clinical type 1 diabetes, ascertained from nationwide childhood diabetes registries. Hazard ratios were estimated using Cox regression.

Overall, 504 participants developed type 1 diabetes for an incidence of 30.5 per 100,000 person-years in the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort and 23.5 per 100,000 person-years in the Danish National Birth Cohort.

Children who were never breastfed had a twofold increased risk of type 1 diabetes compared with those who were breastfed (hazard ratio 2.29 [95% CI 1.144.61] for no breastfeeding vs. any breastfeeding for 12 months). Among those who were breastfed, however, the incidence of type 1 diabetes was independent of duration of both full breastfeeding (hazard ratio per month 0.99 [95% CI 0.971.01]) and any breastfeeding (0.97 [0.921.03]).

Breastfeeding was never initiated in 0.8% of the Norwegian cohort and 2.4% of the Danish cohort; full breastfeeding for at least 6 months was reported in 13.8% of the Norwegian cohort and 6.3% of the Danish cohort; any breastfeeding for at least 12 months was reported in 38.5% of the Norwegian cohort and 20.2% of the Danish cohort.

The risk for developing type 1 diabetes was higher in children who were never breastfed compared with any breastfeeding for at least 12 months (HR = 2.29; 95% CI, 1.14-4.61) and compared with full breastfeeding for at least 6 months (HR = 2.31; 95% CI, 1.11-4.8).

The results from two of the worlds largest birth cohorts provide suggestive evidence for the hypothesis that initiating breastfeeding may reduce the risk of type 1 diabetes, the researchers wrote. However, among those who were breastfed, the study provides strong evidence against a clinically important association with prolonging full or any breastfeeding and risk of type 1 diabetes.

In another but similar study, Nonindigenous Canadian mothers who initiated breastfeeding in the hospital reduced their risk for diabetes by 23%, whereas their offspring experienced an 18% risk reduction for developing the disease, according to study findings presented at the World Diabetes Congress.

In this population-based analysis of more than 330,000 live births during a 24-year period, researchers also found that women saw a 14% risk reduction for diabetes when they initiated breastfeeding.

The message from these studies is that, every mother should try to initiate breastfeeding if she can, no matter how long the duration, to receive beneficial effects including reducing the risk for diabetes.

For this study, they analyzed hospital records from 334,553 deliveries (60,088 First Nation births) taking place in Manitoba between 1987 and 2011. Within the cohort, 262,124 women initiated breastfeeding in the hospital (mean age, 28 years; 13% First Nations; 2.9% with gestational diabetes), and 72,429 did not initiate breastfeeding (mean age, 26 years; 36% First Nations; 4.2% with gestational diabetes), according to hospital records that note breastfeeding initiation at discharge. Researchers also determined diabetes status through hospital records.

Breastfeeding initiation was associated with significantly lower incidence of diabetes in mothers and offspring without a history of gestational diabetes.

Researchers found that First Nations status did not significantly affect the association between breastfeeding and incident diabetes for offspring and, therefore, pooled analyses, finding that children of mothers who initiated breastfeeding had an 18% reduced risk for diabetes (adjusted HR = 0.83; 95% CI, 0.69-0.99).

The protective effects of breastfeeding observed in mothers and children were independent of First Nations status, gestational diabetes, gestational hypertension, maternal age, birth weight, and socioeconomic factors, according to researchers.

Practice Pearls:

Diabetes Care 2017 May; dc170016. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc17-0016

Martens PJ, et al. Abstract #0511. Presented at: World Diabetes Congress; Nov. 30-Dec. 4, 2015

Read the rest here:
Breastfeeding Helps to Prevent Type 1 Diabetes - Diabetes In Control

Insulin typically saves the lives of those with diabetes, but it can also be a way for some people to kill themselves, a new review warns.

People with the blood sugar disease tend to suffer higher rates of depression, the researchers explained. And suicide or suicide attempts using insulin or other diabetes medications that lower blood sugar levels may not always be an easy-to-spot attempt at self-harm, they added.

"Some suicides with insulin are likely missed in people with diabetes, just as [suicide may be missed] in people without diabetes using other medications or after a car accident. Could a suicide using insulin be missed? Absolutely," said Alicia McAuliffe-Fogarty, vice president of lifestyle management at the American Diabetes Association.

Insulin is a natural hormone produced by the body. Its job is to help usher the sugar from foods into the body's cells to provide fuel for those cells. But insulin is also a complex medication.

People with type 1 diabetes no longer make enough insulin and must give themselves insulin to stay alive. People with type 2 diabetes don't use insulin efficiently -- this is called insulin resistance -- and eventually don't make enough insulin to keep up with the body's demands. At this point, people with type 2 diabetes also need to take insulin.

Play Video

Some diabetes patients are begging doctors for free samples of life-saving insulin because of costs. Between 2002 and 2013, the price of insulin ...

Insulin can be given by multiple injections every day or via an insulin pump. Insulin pumps deliver insulin through a small tube that's inserted under the skin. The site of the insulin pump must be changed every few days. But once the tube is in, someone who uses an insulin pump only needs to push a few buttons to deliver a dose of insulin.

However, getting the right amount of insulin is no easy task. Many factors affect the body's need for insulin. Exercise decreases the need. Foods that are higher in carbohydrates increase the need. Stress and other moods can affect the need for insulin, as can illness or hormonal shifts, such as those that occur with menstruation.

People with diabetes often have to make adjustments to their insulin doses. If they make a mistake and take too much, an extremely low blood sugar level (hypoglycemia) can occur. If they give themselves too little insulin, their blood sugar levels rise (hyperglycemia). Either condition can be very dangerous.

According to Dr. Alyson Myers, director of inpatient diabetes at North Shore University Hospital, in Manhasset, N.Y., "If someone comes in with hypoglycemia, you think, 'Oh, they overdid it.' And, sometimes when people come in with hyperglycemia or DKA (a complication of hyperglycemia), the intention to self-harm can be missed."

Myers is also the lead author of the review, published recently in the journalCurrent Diabetes Reviews.

Play Video

Researchers are testing Botox injections to see if the drug could help ease depression and social anxiety. CBS News' Weijia Jiang reports.

It's not clear exactly how high the rates of suicide are in people with diabetes, though Myers said the rates are higher than in the general population.

Plus, an attempt at suicide using insulin or other blood sugar-lowering medications may ultimately fail. "The body is a resilient thing," Myers said, explaining that the body has ways to protect itself, such as releasing a natural form of sugar from the liver.

Instead of automatically assuming there was an error in care, Myers recommended that physicians consider the possibility of a suicide attempt or self-harm through the use of insulin and other medications.

She suggested that doctors follow the guidelines from the diabetes association on psychosocial care for people with diabetes that includes a multi-disciplinary team, including a behavioral health specialist.

McAuliffe-Fogarty agreed that when doctors see patients -- whether it's in the hospital or for an office visit -- they should screen for psychosocial concerns.

If a doctor identifies a potential concern, "refer to a mental health care provider so people can get the help they need to live a full and happy life," she said.

Given that 20 percent to 25 percent of people with diabetes screen positive for depressive symptoms at some point, people may need help sometimes.

"If you see signs of depression, changes in people's sleep patterns or eating behaviors, a loss of interest in things they once enjoyed; if they say things like, 'when I'm not here things will be better,' or express an intention to self-harm, make an appointment with a mental health-care provider. People often need some help coping and figuring out how to deal with things," McAuliffe-Fogarty said.

"If you're very nervous that they might harm themselves, call their doctor or bring them to the hospital. Or call 911 if you think they're in immediate trouble," she advised.

If you're concerned that a loved one or friend may be considering suicide, McAuliffe-Fogarty said it's OK to ask, though some people consider the word suicide to be taboo. "Ask, 'Are you thinking of hurting yourself or thinking of not being here?' Sometimes people are relieved and will open up."

But McAuliffe-Fogarty also cautioned that every misuse of insulin may not be a deliberate act of self-harm.

"It's not always self-harm or a suicide attempt," she stressed.

One such example, "Some people use insulin omission to lose weight. It's a type of disordered eating, but they're not trying to hurt themselves," she explained.

Read the original post:
Suicide by insulin a risk in people with diabetes - CBS News

The American Diabetes Association Education Recognition Certificate for a quality diabetes self-management education program was recently awarded to the Magnolia Regional Medical Center program.

ADSA believes that this program offers high-quality education that is an essential component of effective diabetes treatment.

The Associations Education Recognition Certificate assures that educational programs meet the National Standards for Diabetes Self-Management Education Programs. These Standards were developed and tested under the auspices of the National Diabetes Advisory Board in 1983 and were revised by the diabetes community in 1994, 2000, 2007 and 2012.

Programs apply for recognition voluntarily. Programs that achieve recognition status have a staff of knowledgeable health professionals who can provide participants with comprehensive information about diabetes management.

The process gives professionals a national standard by which to measure the quality of services they provide, said Rex Jones, CEO. And, of course, it assures the consumer that he or she will likely receive high-quality service.

Education Recognition status is verified by an official certificate from ADA and is awarded for four years.

According to the American Diabetes Association, there are 29.1 million people or 9.3% of the population in the United States who have diabetes. While an estimated 21 million have been diagnosed, unfortunately, 8.1 million people are not aware that they have this disease. Each day more than 3,900 people are diagnosed with diabetes.

Many will first learn that they have diabetes when they are treated for one of its life-threatening complications heart disease and stroke, kidney disease, blindness, and nerve disease and amputation.

About 1.4 million new cases of diabetes were diagnosed in people aged 20 years or older in 2014 in the U.S. Diabetes contributed to 234,051 deaths in 2010, making it the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S. Overall, the risk for death among people with diabetes is 50% greater than that of people of similar age but without diabetes.

The American Diabetes Association is the nations leading non-profit health organization supporting diabetes research, advocacy and information for health professionals, patients and the public. Founded in 1940, the association conducts programs in communities nationwide.

Here is the original post:
MRMC's diabetes education program receives certification - Magnoliareporter

Research led by the University of Adelaide is paving the way for safer and more effective drugs to treat type 2 diabetes, reducing side effects and the need for insulin injections.

Two studies, published in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry and BBA-General Subjects, have shown for the first time how new potential anti-diabetic drugs interact with their target in the body at the molecular level.

These new potential drugs have a completely different action than the most commonly prescribed anti-diabetic, Metformin, which acts on the liver to reduce glucose production, and are potentially more efficient at reducing blood sugar. They target a protein receptor known as PPARgamma found in fat tissue throughout the body, either fully or partially activating it in order to lower blood sugar by increasing sensitivity to insulin and changing the metabolism of fat and sugar.

"Type two diabetes is characterised by resistance to insulin with subsequent high blood sugar which leads to serious disease. It is usually associated with poor lifestyle factors such as diet and lack of exercise," says lead researcher Dr John Bruning, with the University's School of Biological Sciences and Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing.

"Prevalence of type 2 diabetes in Australia alone has more than tripled since 1990, with an estimated cost of $6 billion a year. The development of safe and more efficient therapeutics is therefore becoming increasingly important.

"People with severe diabetes need to take insulin but having to inject this can be problematic, and it's difficult to get insulin levels just right. It's highly desirable for people to come off insulin injections and instead use oral therapeutics."

The first study, in collaboration with The Scripps Research Institute in Florida, US, describes an honours research project by Rebecca Frkic, where 14 different versions of a drug which partially activates PPARgamma were produced. Partial activation can have the benefit of fewer side-effects than full activation.

The original drug, INT131, is currently being tested in clinical trials in the US but some of the versions produced at the University of Adelaide have increased potency compared to the original, with the potential to further improve the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

"A major finding of this study was being able to show which regions of the drug are most important for interacting with the PPARgamma receptor," says Dr Bruning. "This means we now have the information to design modified drugs which will work even more efficiently."

The second study, in collaboration with Flinders University, used X-ray crystallography to demonstrate for the first time exactly how a potential new drug, rivoglitazone, binds with the PPARgamma receptor. Rivoglitazone fully activates PPARgamma but has less side effects than others with this mode of action.

"Showing how this compound interacts with its target is a key step towards being able to design new therapeutics with higher efficiencies and less side-effects," says lead author Dr Rajapaksha, from Flinders University School of Medicine (now at La Trobe University). "Lack of structural information was hampering determination of the precise mechanisms involved."

Story Source:

Materials provided by University of Adelaide. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

Go here to read the rest:
Designing better drugs to treat type 2 diabetes - Science Daily