A study made by researchers from the South of France revealed that grape polyphenol extract can significantly aid in the fight against diabetes.

Researchers coming from the South of France’s University of Montpellier reported that rats that were given a high-sugar and high-fat diet managed to display reduced fat accumulation in their muscle tissue provided that their diet was supplemented with grape polyphenols. The researchers believe that the antioxidant compounds that are found in red grapes are responsible for preventing fat build up.  Furthermore, the antioxidants positively affect the body’s insulin response.  Insulin is a hormone that is responsible for fat and sugar metabolism.

Diets that contain high amounts of saturated fat are said to further worsen a person’s resistance to insulin.  What happens is that the cells no longer adequately respond to the normal insulin levels produced inside the body.  As the researchers explained in the British Journal of Nutrition, this is a typical marker of diabetes onset.

Diabetes Facts

According to the 2005-2007 figures provided by the American Diabetes Association, diabetes affects 8 percent of the American population, or approximately 24 million people. The financial impact associated with diabetes is staggering – estimated to be $175 billion, from which $116 billion is spent on medications. Aside from the financial aspect of diabetes, the emotional and social impact could not be overlooked. A diabetic person would normally suffer anxiety and depression regarding his health. His activities would also be affected especially when complications such as retinopathy, cataracts and poor sensation have occurred. This would lead us to conclude that indeed, prevention is better than cure.

Details of the Study

The study, conducted at the University of Montpellier, made use of rats as its subjects. The lab rats were randomly assigned into three different groups.  One group was given a standard diet for a lab rat and the remaining two groups were given a high-fat, high-sugar diet, with one group given an additional grape polyphenol extract. The results revealed that the lab rats who were given the grape polyphenol extract exhibited lower levels of triglycerides in their muscular cell membranes as compared to those who were not given the grape extract. Furthermore, the group that was fed with grape extract had an increase in the levels of Omega-3 fatty acids in their cell membranes.

Complications of Diabetes

If the condition remains uncontrolled, diabetes can actually precipitate the development of other serious health conditions. Below are some of the complications brought about by diabetes:

Retinopathy. Also known as diabetic retinopathy, this condition is mainly because of the very high levels of sugar in the blood which damages the small blood vessels in the eyes, specifically in the area of the retina a tissue that is sensitive to light and is essential for good vision. The blood vessels can either swell, causing fluid to leak out, while some people experience an abnormal growth of blood vessels in the retina’s surface.  Retinopathy is the most common cause of blindness among Americans.

Nephropathy. Diabetic nephropathy affects the functional units of the kidney known as the nephrons.  Once extensive damage to the nephrons occurs, kidney damage may follow suit. High levels of sugar in the bloodstream, or hyperglycemia, can once again cause damage to the blood vessels of the kidney. The kidneys are mainly responsible for removing wastes from our body, and if kidney disease develops, the wastes, which are toxic to the human body, will start to accumulate. Nephropathy is one of the most common causes of mortality and morbidity in persons diagnosed with diabetes. It is so dangerous because it can lead to kidney failure which may precipitate the need for a kidney transplant or dialysis.

Neuropathies. Commonly known as nerve damage, diabetic neuropathy presents dangers to the person. High levels of blood sugar leading to damaged blood vessels may cause inflammation which, in turn, could trigger the development of neuropathies.  Problems on the nerves may occur in almost any organ in the body – legs, feet, arms, hands, and sex organs.  Symptoms such as a tingling sensation, pain or numbness may occur. Diabetics are often cautioned not to go barefooted around the house because the condition tends to cause the loss of sensation, especially in the areas of the foot. A small wound could be the source of a big problem, especially because diabetics typically exhibit delayed wound healing since their blood is viscous and has difficulty reaching distal parts of the body.

How to Deal with Diabetes

The cost of diabetic medications could significantly affect a person’s finances.  However, there are a lot of natural means to help you prevent, and deal, with the condition.  Below are excellent recommendations:

• Maintain a Healthy Weight

If you haven’t been living a healthy lifestyle, then it’s time to act now before it’s too late.  This would mean eating the right kinds of food and regularly exercising. Obese individuals are more prone to develop diabetes. Foods, herbs and spices such as lupin seeds, flax seeds, avocadoes, sweet potatoes, lemons, blueberries, cherries, almonds, onions, cinnamon, ginkgo biloba, bilberry, bitter melon, garlic and barley are excellent for diabetes management.  Drinking green tea has also been found to help in the prevention, management and control of diabetes due to its antioxidant content.

• Take in Supplements.

Manganese supplements aid in the repair of pancreas, the organ responsible for the production of insulin. 5-10 milligrams of manganese per day could very well do the trick.

Coenzyme Q10 helps enhance circulation and it also acts as a blood sugar stabilizer. Take 100mg of CoQ10 each day for healthy blood sugar levels.

Zinc supplements should be taken because diabetics have been found to have zinc deficiency. 50-80 milligrams is the recommended dosage.

• Know what to Avoid

When going grocery shopping, learn to read the labels. Just because the box says it’s sugar-free doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll give in right away.  Be wary of foods and beverages that contain a lot of sugar – as sweet as it may seem, it won’t do you any good. Aside from sugar, avoid foods that contain saturated fats. If you already are a diagnosed diabetic, continuous intake of saturated fats will most likely double your risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

Sources
nutraingredients.com
nei.nih.gov
nlm.nih.gov
diabetes.niddk.nih.gov

Polyphenols or phytochemicals found in green tea can help fight off bad cholesterol and harmful sugar-derived substances through strong antioxidant activity in the body.

In a recent scientific research published in the journal Food Chemistry in Taiwan, it was found that the compound EGCG or epigallocatechin 3 gallate can help reduce low-density lipoproteins (LDL) or bad cholesterol and also prevents glycatin of blood sugar. Glycation is a process whereby sugar molecules are able to bind with other types of molecules such as protein.  Glycation is characteristic of conditions such as type 2 diabetes or adult onset diabetes.

To mimic actual conditions in the human body, the in-vitro study simulated in-vivo conditions by using human blood serum.

According to the researchers Chi-Hao Wu, Chi-Tai Yey and Gow-Chin Yen, the resistance of bad cholesterol to anti-oxidant activity was directly countered by the introduction of polyphenols found in green tea.  EGCG was also able to inhibit glycation in the same in-vitro studies.

Based on this research, the researchers stated that modest health benefits related to heart health and diabetes can be acquired through regular drinking of green tea.

Benefits of drinking green tea

And there are other reasons to love green tea:

1. Due to its antioxidant properties, green tea has been viewed in the world of alternative medicine and naturopathy as a natural cancer preventive both in men and women.

2. Reducing oxidative stress can also help reduce pain, which is why drinking green tea can also help people with chronic conditions such as arthritis and rheumatism.

3. There has been some evidence that green tea can help reduce the incidence of heart diseases by lowering bad cholesterol.

4. Increasing the amount of antioxidants in the body can boost the immune function, which effectively reduces “sick days” and helps the body bounce back from illnesses such as the common flu or the common cold.

5. In a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, it was found that people who took green tea with beverages along with modest amounts of caffeine tend to burn more calories than those who don’t drink such beverages.

6. Green tea has antibacterial activity, which may help fight off cavities and tooth decay.

7. A study in Japan showed that people who regularly drank tea were at less risk for cancer and heart problems.

8. Green tea is a natural healing aid for people with multiple sclerosis.

9. Green tea has also been noted as a potential ally against Parkinson’s disease.  Antioxidants help prevent the brain from suffering from too much oxidative stress.

10. Green tea can help regulate the natural fluid balance of the body.

11. This beverage can also help reduce the incidence of allergies because it is capable of blocking allergy receptors, like a natural anti-allergy medication.

12. Green tea can help people lose weight by stimulating the body’s metabolism.

Sources:
nutraingredients.com
chinesefood.about.com
healthmad.com
greenteasecrets.com
clinical.diabetesjournals.org

Lab tests show rats drinking coffee (black) had lower blood sugar levels than rats drinking water.

Coffee drinking is rarely associated as being a boon for someone’s health.  It’s derided for being too high in caffeine, disparaged as being a cause for tooth staining, and pilloried for being a high calorie diet buster.

While the negative health claims of coffee have elements of truth, the anti-coffee crusaders conveniently ignore the benefits of coffee, such as its ability to reduce a person’s risk of liver cancer and alcohol-related liver disease.

But there’s another reason to grab your cup o’ Joe before leaving for work tomorrow:  It may reduce your risk for diabetes.

With the recent health concerns of former Poison front man Bret Michaels, diabetes has been in the news headlines quite a bit lately.  Michaels suffers from type I diabetes and has become the diabetic community’s front man in helping garner attention to a condition that affects hundreds of millions of people worldwide.  Michaels recently appeared on Donald Trump’s “Celebrity Apprentice,” earning hundreds of thousands of dollars for his charity, the American Diabetes Association, in the process.

The hope is that that money will go a long way in helping discover a cure for a disease affects 23.6 million people in the United States alone, as diabetics cope with their disease day after day through insulin therapy, diet alterations and various other treatments.

No one is immune from getting diabetes, and while type I diabetes is usually acquired at birth, type II diabetes—or adult onset diabetes—can occur at any time in life.

But researchers think that people may be able to reduce their risk for type II diabetes by drinking coffee.

Dr. Fumihiko Horio found this link after feeding a group of laboratory rats either water or coffee.  Through blood testing, they found that the rats fed coffee showed an improvement in their sensitivity to insulin and had lower blood sugar levels compared to the water-drinking rats.  Researchers believe coffee’s prevention qualities is due to its high caffeine content, calling caffeine “one of the most effective anti-diabetic compounds in coffee.”

This latest round of research is in contradistinction to a 2008 study that said coffee tended to increase blood sugar levels among diabetics.  In that study, researchers followed 10 people with type II diabetes to see what, if any, effect high levels of caffeine had on their blood sugar levels.  They found that blood sugar levels increased by an average of eight percent when participants consumed a caffeine pill that contained about the same amount of caffeine as an eight ounce serving of coffee.

Of course the difference between the two studies is that one looked at how coffee prevented diabetes, while the other looked at how coffee affected people who already had diabetes.  Another difference is that one study used coffee, while the other used caffeine pills in place of coffee.

This fact alone suggests that it may be something other than caffeine that has diabetes preventive qualities, especially when past studies reached the same conclusions while using decaffeinated coffee.

More research is in the offing.  In the meantime, don’t beat yourself up over your coffee habit.  So long as you’re consuming coffee black and that you’re consuming no more than a couple cups a day, drinking coffee is a healthy habit to have.

Sources
latimesblogs.latimes.com
sciencedaily.com

Lifelong exposure to air pollution can increase a person's risk for type 2 diabetes.

In a new study that will appear in the journal Environment Health Perspectives, air pollution was linked to increased incidence of diabetes 2 or adult-onset diabetes.  The study involved respondents in Germany who lived in heavily polluted industrial areas.

The study was first initiated in the eighties.  After sixteen years, researchers made a follow-up study and found out that many of their original respondents (many aged fifty and up) now have type-2 diabetes.  Out of 1,775 of the total number of respondents in the long-term study, it was found that 187 of the respondents (all women) developed the degenerative condition by late 2006.

How did it happen?  Researchers are still non-conclusive, but there are many solid theories surrounding the phenomena.  Many doctors agree that lifelong exposure to pollutants can set off a biological chain reaction in the body, which produces chronic inflammation that affects many of the body’s organs and functions.

Many doctors agree that inflammation is a significant contributing factor to the development of type 2 diabetes.  According to Rashmi Gulati MD of New York City, breathing in polluted air does not help prevent type 2 diabetes.  Couple this with the Couch Potato syndrome and unhealthy eating patterns and a person is at higher risk for many health conditions, not just diabetes 2.

Type 2 diabetes

What is type 2 diabetes? Type 2 diabetes occurs when one or both of these happen: the body does not produce enough insulin to break down the blood sugar or the body’s cells are no longer sensitive to the natural insulin produced by the body.

When either of these happen, the sugar in the body accumulates, leading to damage to many of the body’s organs over the long term.  Diabetics are at higher risk for heart diseases and stroke, as well.  Slow wound healing and gangrene are also potential risks that face the type 2 diabetic.  Type 2 diabetes is not limited to adults.  Increasingly, this disease has manifested in overweight children.

The most common treatment for type 2 diabetes is insulin shots and medication like metformin, which is used to control blood sugar levels and bring down blood sugar levels to normal.  If left untreated, diabetics can suffer from neuropathies and even vision loss as well.

Protect yourself from air pollution

There are several steps to avoid the hazards of air pollution:

1. Air pollution can adversely affect your respiratory tract.  If you live in a heavily polluted area, make sure that you get more than enough water everyday.  Water helps carry away toxins and also keeps your respiratory system working efficiently.
2. Avoid areas that have declared high ozone levels.
3. If you have to go out near heavily polluted areas, wait until sunset before going out.  The higher the sun is up in the sky, the higher the ozone content of the air.
4. If there is a wildfire near your neighborhood, close your doors and windows and seal any cracks or openings with tape.  This will create a limited ‘clean zone’ that prevents most of the smoke from outside from entering your home.
5. Invest in vitamin supplements – especially those that are high in easily-absorbed vitamin C.  Vitamin C strengthens the lungs and protects you from the harsh effects of air pollution.
6. Exercise regularly so your body can naturally detoxify. Many toxins are stored in the body’s tissues.  When you exercise, these toxins are transported outside of the body.  With regular exercise, you will feel lighter and more energized because you have less toxin load in your body.
7. If you live in a highly polluted area and you need to use your bike or motorcycle, do wear a dust mask.

Sources:
aolhealth.com
sixwise.com
fitness.ygoy.com
iqair.com

Italian researchers believe pine bark extract can improve the visual acuity of diabetics with poor eyesight.

Say you fall victim to some mysterious illness.  The illness is such that it renders four of your senses useless.  What’s the one sense that you’d want to keep more than any other?

For me, hands down, it’s eyesight.  I can’t imagine not being able to see remarkable sunsets, gorgeous landscapes, the bustling streets of New York City, or the clear blue waters of the Caribbean.

Yet for millions of diabetics, sight is something they’re robbed of.  It doesn’t happen for each and every one of the estimated 24 million Americans that have diabetes, but the chance of their becoming blind is steep indeed.  Simply because they’re diabetic, they are 60 percent more likely to develop cataracts and 40 percent more likely to develop glaucoma.

But a new study published in the Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics indicates that eyesight can be improved in diabetics by supplementing with pine bark extract.

Pine bark being used as a healing aid goes all the way back to the days when French explorers roamed the Americas.  Legend has it that when Jacques Cartier arrived on the new world, fellow shipmen of his were terribly ill with scurvy.  But thanks to the medicinal knowledge and know-how of the Native Americans, their symptoms disappeared after drinking tea made with pine bark from an East White Cedar tree.

Pine tree bark remains in use today.  Its high antioxidant content makes it something of an all-purpose supplement, helping people recover from arthritis, cancer and diabetes complications.

Speaking of diabetes complications, the participants in the aforementioned study had all been diabetic for four years.  For two months, the Italian researchers had 24 of the participants supplement with 150 milligrams of pine bark extract.  The remaining participants served as the control group and supplemented with a placebo.

At the end of the study, three out of every four participants that supplemented with the pine bark extract improved their eyesight.  They reported being able to see more clearly, and tests measuring their eye strength increased from 14/20 to 17/20.

Researchers believe the pine bark extract proved beneficial because of its ability to stimulate greater blood flow to the eyes.

It’s hard to believe that sugar regulation can have such a huge impact on the eyes, but that’s the very thing that puts diabetics at such risk for blindness.  When the body’s sugar levels can’t be maintained properly (i.e. due to an inability to produce enough insulin), the blood vessels in the eye become severely weakened.  This weakening increases the chances of capillaries bursting.  Capillaries in the eye burst all the time, but when they’re weakened because of insufficient sugar regulation, they often become closed off.  This means that they can’t grow back, robbing the retina of the blood it needs to survive and function.  Approximately 40 percent of diabetics with eye problems have diabetic retinopathy.

Diabetes is the leading cause of blindness in adults.

Sources:
nutraingredients.com
cancer.org
aoa.org

Pomegranates may reduce obesity and diabetes risk.

For me, the month of August is one of the more sad times of the year.  It’s a month of endings:  The summer’s last hurrah, the end of balmy weather, and final reminiscences at the family get-together.

On the other hand, August can be a happy time of year.  It signals new beginnings:  Teams returning to the gridiron, students returning to school (granted, some students happier than others), and farmers returning to fields, hoping to reap a successful harvest from their prized possessions.

The yummy pomegranate is one such prized possession, as August signals harvest time for pome-growers across the country (though pomegranates grow throughout the country, 3/4ths of the pomegranates sold in America grow in California).

Pomegranates are prized for their seeds.  A rare breed indeed is the pomegranate, for its one of the few fruits heralded almost exclusively for its seeds.  In fact, the literal translation of the word “pomegranate” is “apple with many seeds” or “seeded apple.”

Nutritionally, the pomegranate’s hailed for its antioxidant prowess.  In a past article I wrote about the pomegranate, I cited a UCLA study that showed how pomegranate juice is the most antioxidant-filled juice on the planet.  It’s also a rich source for vitamin C.

A more recent study gives even more gravitas to the great ‘granate, for it may reduce weight gain and the prevalence of diabetes.

Researchers from the University of Houston discovered this after providing 60 rats with varying amounts of fat.  Twenty of the rats were fed high doses of fat, another 20 were fed the same amount of fat and supplemented with pomegranate seed oil, and the final 20 were fed a typical rat diet (whatever that is).

The end of the study revealed some surprising findings.  Because not only did the group of rats fed the pomegranate oil gain less weight (10 grams less) despite eating the same amount of fat as the first group, but they also had a greater sensitivity to insulin.  Insulin is what allows the body to convert the things we eat into glucose for energy expenditure.  When the body resists insulin (people who are insulin resistant are typically those with type II diabetes), it results in a greater storage of fat.  This is part of the reason why obesity and diabetes are so closely linked.

The study is published in the British Journal of Nutrition.

Now, I grant you, this study was performed on rats, so it can’t be applied to humans at this point.  Further, 10 grams is not a whole heck of a lot when there are 453 grams in a pound.

I make these points only because the cynics are bound to make them, not to downplay the study’s findings.  After all, even if the rats fed the pomegranate seed oil had lost 30 or 40 grams, you can bet the cynics would find something to criticize the findings.  After all, with the cynics, their gripe is with natural health in general; they’ll search for anything to downplay what they see as “non-sense science.”

But they can’t escape the fact that pomegranates improved weight levels and insulin resistance.  As small as it may have been, it happened.  And just as the month of August signals the beginning of the pomegranate season, this study signals the beginning of future discoveries tying pomegranates to disease prevention (it’s already been tied to cancer prevention, not to mention Alzheimer’s disease and heart disease).

Sources:
nutraingredients.com
diabetes.org
pomegranates.org

Consuming a high fiber diet reduces diabetes risk in Latin Americans.

I fully recognize that this is a report that’s not exactly breaking news.  And if you’ve read even a little of my book, you know what an advocate I am of maintaining a high fiber diet, while reducing any diet that’s high in sugar. You also know that my book’s backed with a host of studies that defend my positions.  But like any good defense, it’s best countered with a good offense, which is why I felt compelled to bring to your attention the latest study that shows how a diet high in fiber improves the risk factors associated with diabetes.

The latest fiber find comes from the journal Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine and it involved a targeted group of children, Latin-American children.  Latin-American children are similar to African-Americans in that they are more susceptible to diabetes than Caucasians, simply because of their ethnicity.  In fact, the American Diabetes Association says that African Americans are almost two times more likely to develop diabetes than non-Latino Caucasians (notice I said “non-Latino).  Whether that’s due to environment or some biological aspect that differentiates blacks from whites, no one knows for sure.  But I digress, because this study focused on children of Latino descent.

The study was surprisingly straightforward.  All the researchers did was have the children consume less sugar per day – the equivalent of about 47 grams, or what amounts to about one can of Coca-Cola – and increase their fiber intake by about five grams per day (or one cup of a high fiber cereal, like Kashi Go Lean).

These small changes elicited some huge results.  Because by the study’s conclusion, the children who upped their fiber intake while decreasing their sugar intake (56 percent of them did this) decreased their adipose fat tissue volume by 10 percent and decreased their insulin secretion by about 33 percent.  This is a good thing, of course, because the less insulin that’s released into the blood stream, the more normal the blood sugar levels are.

It’s important to get our kids on the fiber bandwagon early in life by really emphasizing vegetables at the dinner table and at lunch hour.  It’s of particular importance among Latin Americans.  For whatever reason, Latin-Americans are at great risk for diabetes development, a condition that leads to approximately 300,000 deaths annually in Latin America and the Carribbean, according to the Pan American Health Organization.  And that’s just the toll it takes on life.  Diabetes puts a significant strain on the Latin American economy, as disabilities that stem from diabetes leave business eating $763 million in productivity losses.

To stem this flow of productivity and, much more importantly, life itself, a high fiber diet needs to be the hallmark of any eating plan.  It’s not just great for the regulation of the digestive system, but for the regulation of diabetes, and virtually every other health issue you can imagine, from the head (the B vitamins in high fiber diets improve brain function) to the heart (high fiber diets decrease the chances of developing heart disease).

Sources:
steadyhealth.com
nutraingredients-usa.com
defeatdiabetes.org
nutraingredients-usa.com

Lack of sleep can endanger your health, including increased diabetes risk.

It sounds like a study straight out of the timeless nursery rhyme Goldilocks and the Three Bears, where the porridge can’t be too hot or cold, the chair can’t be too big or small and the bed can’t be too spacious or cramped.  It has to be “just right,” or the results can be devastating for your health.

What am I talking about?  Sleep.  How too little or too much of it increases the chances of developing type II diabetes, this according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Copenhagen.

Sleep is one of those mysterious things in life that we all know we need, but no one really knows why.  Without it, the effects are quite apparent—we don’t perform at our jobs as effectively, our personalities are affected negatively (crabbiness, short-temperedness) and we increase our risk of developing life’s nuisances, like colds, or plagues like expedited aging.

So I suppose it comes as no surprise that sleep also impacts whether one develops diabetes – after all, it seems to impact every other aspect of life.

Before coming to their conclusions, the Danish researchers made sure to take into account contributing factors for developing diabetes, as it’s often predicated on one’s ethnicity, family background, weight and age.  Once those things were given their due attention, they arrived at some fascinating results.

After tracking the sleep pattern behaviors of approximately 280 participants in their study over a six-year period, they found that those who slept more than what was considered “average” were 20 percent more likely to have developed diabetes.  The same percentage was found among those who slept below the “average” amount of time.

What did the researchers classify as “average”?  You guessed it—between seven and eight hours of sleep per night.

This isn’t to say that those who slept the average amount of time didn’t get diabetes, but their rate of developing diabetes was significantly lower, about 7 percent overall.

Despite all the data and the importance placed on sleep in the media and elsewhere, many of us consider it to be something of an afterthought.  After all, with only 24 hours in which to perform our daily tasks, who has time to sleep?  I know I often fall into this line of thinking.

It’s a flawed line of thinking, though.  Study after study shows just how important sleep is, but most of us don’t need to see a study to appreciate sleep’s importance.  We can feel it and we can see it in our diminished performance at work, at home, or at the gym.

To get more sleep, you really need to commit to a routine.  The body enjoys routine, particularly when it comes to quality shuteye.  If you can, try to go to bed at the same time every night and wake up at the same time every morning.  Use your bed for its purpose – sleep – not as a couch for television watching or as a La-Z Boy for snacking.  And don’t underestimate the power of sound when sleeping.  Small things can improve or disturb one’s ability to sleep, like the television (disturb) or, as my mom used to call it, “the sounds of the night” (improve).  Find a noise that’s comforting while sleeping, like the chirping of the peepers if you live in a more rural area, or the pitter-patter of rain if you live in the often rain-soaked Northwest.

Sleep could very well prevent a life spent pricking your finger to test your blood sugar.  But as it pertains to life in general and how the lack of it often causes lashing out at those around us, sleep can prevent us from being hostile to others, not to mention our long term health.

Source:
Science Daily

Genomic mapping of APOE, which is one of the markers for Alzheimer's

The ongoing financial crisis the country is embroiled in has opened my eyes to how intricate a web our economic structure is.  The so-called domino effect of the economic collapse – starting with the housing bubble bursting,  leading to a chorus of bursting bubbles up and down Main Street and Wall Street – is a very real thing, and its effects can be seen everywhere, from the tumbling stock market, skyrocketing jobless claims, nixed newspapers, and bailout bonanzas.

But the domino effect is not solely a function of the economy; it’s also found in health matters.

For a number of weeks now, story after story I’ve written has talked about the linkage of one disease to another, how having one disease exacerbates the risk of having another.

This time, it’s with regards to Alzheimer’s risk. 

More than five million people in the country have Alzheimer’s, one of the most painful diseases to watch anyone experience because its effects mentally rob Alzheimer’s victims of everything they once were at a slow but sure pace. 

Thankfully, tireless researchers uncover more and more about it and what habits, diseases and lifestyles serve as it’s precursor, or alternatively, as it’s preventer (my section on Alzheimer’s is a testament to that).  To this point, research suggests lifestyle and environmental factors do play a role, but the chief contributor is one that none of us can change:  genetics.

I suppose it depends on the person as to whether this brings a sense of coolness or fearfulness – the knowledge that since it’s out of your hands, why worry, or since it’s out of your hands, that’s exactly why you worry.

I tend to side with the former, because all we can control is our actions and our behaviors.  That said, I bring to you the latest on what researchers say exacerbates the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

According to a study conducted by researchers from Wake Forest University and published in the journal DiabetesCare, people with diabetes are more at risk for developing Alzheimer’s because of the way insulin resistance affects the brain.  They discovered this link after conducting what the Associated Press referred to as a “battery” of tests on 3,000 people with Type 2 diabetes.  These tests measured the participants’ cognitive function, or their ability to think, reason, and remember certain cues. 

Another test they performed measured their A1C score, which gives an indication of the participants’ blood glucose levels as they rise and fall.  These scores were tracked and conducted over several months.

When comparing the A1C scores to the diabetics’ cognitive function tests, they found that whenever glucose levels rose, cognition testing scores declined.  While the drops in scores were small from month to month, they were nonetheless “meaningful,” or so the Demon Deacons’ researchers consider them, because they provide a clearer picture of how insulin resistance adversely affects brain cells.  

Obviously, this news can’t sit well with the estimated 24 million Americans suffering from Alzheimer’s.  But researchers stress that diabetics’ ought not panic, for there are many Alzheimer’s sufferers (I would suggest the lion’s share) who don’t have diabetes.  Further, as aforementioned, genetics still plays the largest role in the risk of developing Alzheimer’s.  Plus, there are other diseases diabetics are more at risk in developing, like heart disease and high blood pressure.

Not exactly a calming rest assurance, is it?

I hate to conclude articles with bad news, especially in times like these where gloom and doom seems so pervasive.  All one can do is their very best.  As you’ll find in my Alzheimer’s section, there’s a wealth of studies showing how lifestyle factors play a huge role in preventing, or hastening, Alzheimer’s onset.  I encourage you to read them and apply them in your life – whether you have diabetes or not.

All we can do is our very best to stay healthy and avoid Alzheimer’s.  By staying informed on Alzheimer’s, how to beat it, and then applying those teachings to your life, you’re doing exactly that.

Sources:
Associated Press
The Washington Post

The researchers gathered 21,831 participants between the ages of forty and seventy-five.  The men and women were all given a clean bill of health after being asked to divulge detailed information regarding both their medical history and their personal lifestyle choices.  Blood samples were also taken in order to determine their Vitamin C levels at the beginning of the study. Then they were all asked to simply live their lives with the addition of a Vitamin C filled diet in order to possibly prevent the development of Type 2 diabetes.

The findings showed that out of the massive number of participants only 423 men and 312 women were diagnoses with Type 2 diabetes, which is 3.2 percent.  The researchers concluded that one would be 62 percent less likely to risk getting the disease if they maintained high levels of Vitamin C than someone only getting very small amounts in their diet.

The team believes this study to be solid enough for “persuasive evidence of a beneficial effect of Vitamin C and fruit and vegetable intake on diabetes risk.”  In a society where unhealthy and processed foods are a staple to the overall diet, it is important to truly look at this study and others like it.  Maintaining a healthy diet has been proven to provide many benefits regarding health and yet the population chooses to casually ignore it so they can feel better about “super sizing” their already massive fast food orders.  

If we could just learn to pick up an apple instead of a cookie, we would all reap the benefits.  Vitamin C filled foods do not only help with Type 2 diabetes, but also protects the body from heart disease and cancer, holds bone cells together, and maintains both healthy gums and the immune system.  All these life extending benefits are so easily gained through a better diet and lifestyle choices.