Tour de Cure is a fund-raising event to benefit the American Diabetes Association. It is held in 40 states nationwide. The Tour is a ride not a race. It has routes designed for everyone from the occasional rider to the experienced cyclist. No matter how far you ride there will be a route supported from start to finish with rest stops, food to fuel the journey and fans to cheer you all the way.
Every cyclist has their own reason for riding that drives them to the finish line. Maybe you have a family member or other loved one with diabetes, or maybe you have diabetes yourself. Some participants join because they love the thrill of riding with so many other cyclists on a great route. Others join because it’s a good excuse to dust off the bike and ride with the family.
Last year, more than 32,000 cyclists in 78 Tour events raised nearly $13 million to support the mission of the ADA: to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. Participants this year are attempting to raise money to support research for a cure for diabetes. More than 33,000 other cyclists and volunteers are expected at more than 80 sites throughout the nation this spring. To register or volunteer, call the American Diabetes Association at (888) DIABETES or go to http://www.diabetes.org/tour.
A new study in the British medical journal, The Lancet, provides more evidence that pesticide exposure may play a role in development of diabetes. The study’s authors urged researchers to focus on the role of environmental pollutants, challenging the long-held assumption that diabetes is primarily linked to “genetics and the Westernization of dietary habits and lifestyle.” An analysis of the US National Health and Examination Survey from 1999-2002 found a “strong correlation between insulin resistance and serum concentrations of persistent organic pollutants, especially for organochlorine compounds,” such as the pesticide DDT and it’s breakdown chemicals. A 2007 article in Human and Experimental Toxicology reported similar findings. In addition, a Swedish study of 380 men and women exposed to organochlorine compounds showed “a strong association with the occurrence of diabetes,” as did comparable research in Belgium. Studies of US Air Force Vietnam War vets also “suggest an adverse relation between dioxin exposure (via the defoliant Agent Orange) and symptoms of diabetes.”
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health has studied more than 31,000 licensed pesticide applicators. Licensed pesticide applicators use more potent formulations of the chemicals than are found in products sold for use in the home or garden. Among the 50 different pesticides the researchers looked at, half were chlorinated, and 7 of these were tied to an increased risk of type 2 diabetes. They are: aldrin, chlordane, heptachlor, dichlorvos, trichlorfon, alachlor, and cyanazine. The three organochlorine pesticides, aldrin, chlordane, and heptachlor, are no longer sold in the United States.
“All of the seven are chlorinated compounds,” study investigator Dr Freya Kamel of the National Institute of Environmental Health. “We don’t know yet what the implication of that is, but it can’t be a coincidence. I think it’s an important clue for future research.”
A new study published in the June 3 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC), suggests that cocoa can actually help blood vessels to function better and might soon be considered part of a healthy diet for the prevention of cardiovascular disease. A natural plant compound, Flavanols, is responsible for cocoa’s healthful benefits. Flavanols can also be found in tea, red wine, and certain fruits and vegetables.
The study revealed that after a diabetic patients drank specially formulated high-flavanol cocoa for one month, blood vessel function went from severely impaired to normal. Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death in diabetic patients.
“Medical treatments alone often do not prevent complications of diabetes that are associated with atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease,” said Malte Kelm, M.D., a professor and chairman of cardiology, pulmonology and vascular medicine at the University Hospital Aachen and the Technical University Aachen, in Aachen, Germany. “Physicians should be increasingly looking to lifestyle changes and new approaches to help in addressing the cardiovascular risks associated with diabetes.”
“Patients with type 2 diabetes can certainly find ways to fit chocolate into a healthy lifestyle, but this study is not about chocolate, and it’s not about urging those with diabetes to eat more chocolate. This research focuses on what’s at the true heart of the discussion on “healthy chocolate”—it’s about cocoa flavanols, the naturally occurring compounds in cocoa,” he said. “While more research is needed, our results demonstrate that dietary flavanols might have an important impact as part of a healthy diet in the prevention of cardiovascular complications in diabetic patients.”
Denver Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler has been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, his business manager Marty Garafalo confirmed. Cutler, who is 25-years-old will need daily insulin injections. Garafalo said that Cutler was managing his disease and “in no way is his football career jeopardized.”The 6-foot-3, 233-pound Cutler was taken by the Broncos with the 11th overall pick of the 2006 draft, becoming the first Vanderbilt player taken in the first round since 1986. Cutler, entering his third NFL season, threw for 3,497 yards and 20 touchdowns last season after supplanting Jake Plummer with five weeks left in the 2006 season.
“It’s something that he’s dealing with and something a lot of other people have,” Garafalo said. “Even though it’s a serious condition, it’s a condition that can be managed. That’s the way he’s treating it right now. “Everything’s fine,” Garafalo continued. “His condition is fine.”
There are many other athletes who have competed with diabetes include Hockey Hall of Famer Bobby Clarke, Charlotte Bobcats forward Adam Morrison, golfers Scott Verplank, Michelle McGann and Kelli Kuehne and Olympic swimmer Gary Hall Jr.
According to the small study conducted at the University of Guelph in Ontario, drinking caffeinated coffee an hour before eating a bowl of cereal can significantly affect the body’s blood-sugar response. The researchers recruited 10 healthy men. On different occasions they drank decaffeinated coffee or caffeinated coffee one hour before eating the cereal. Two cereals were involved in the study - Kellogg’s All-Bran, considered to have a low glycemic index, and Kellogg’s Crispix, which is considered a high glycemic index cereal.
“If you have caffeinated coffee what you find is that the insulin levels go higher than they would’ve if you didn’t have the caffeinated coffee with that particular cereal,” said Terry Graham, chair of the department of human health and nutritional sciences. Graham has been working with caffeine and insulin resistance in the lab for more than a decade.
“When you got up, you had your coffee and then you thought, ‘Well, I had better behave myself and I’ll have All-Bran,’ and in fact the blood-sugar response to the All-Bran exceeded what the subjects showed if they had decaf and Crispix,” he said. “So by simply combining what you might think of as a more optimal cereal with coffee ended up giving you a response that was larger than what you would have expected from the less optimal cereal.” He added that caffeine levels just barely start to go down in a person three hours after drinking coffee.
The research paper was published online last week by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Although, it calls for more research in the area and also notes a number of limitations to the study.
Can enjoying a dip in a hot tub be good for diabetics? According to a pilot study that appeared in the September 16 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, “hot tub therapy” helped a group of type 2 diabetics reduce their blood sugars, lose weight and improve sleep patterns.
Another study was done by Philip L. Hooper, MD, of the McKee Medical Center in Loveland, Colorado. He studied five type 2 men and three type 2 women. The patients had been suffering from diabetes from three to 14 years. The subjects sat in the hot tub by themselves with water up to their shoulders for 30 minutes per day, six days per week, for three weeks. Most patients had reduced blood glucose levels and had even lost some weight. Although, “Most subjects found that their blood sugars went back up two to three weeks after stopping the study,” says Hooper.
“These results suggest that hot tub therapy should be further evaluated as a therapy for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus,” says Hooper. “It may be especially helpful for patients who are unable to exercise.”
Hooper is in the process of writing a grant for further research in this area from the National Institutes of Health, the American Diabetes Association and possibly the American Heart Association. “My study was a pilot study, which was published in order to provide a new thought in the management of diabetes,” says Hooper. “It cannot be endorsed as an ‘approved’ method of therapy at this time.”
Exercise is required to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Although, making time to go the gym or going for a run can be difficult for us to fit into our schedule. People with type 1 diabetes have other things that can prevent them from being able to exercise. Managing type 1 diabetes often requires several insulin injections or adjustments of an insulin pump, taking up to 10 blood samples a day. Exercise lowers blood sugar level and helps improve the body’s use of insulin. This is great for most of us, but diabetics often need to reduce their insulin dose before exercising. That not all! During exercise, maintaining normal blood glucose levels is also critical because too much insulin can lead to hypoglycemia and too little can cause hyperglycemia.
This is like a lot to keep track of, especially for someone already focusing on a particular exercise or physical activity at hand. Dr. Alan Marcus says, “Since diabetes affects everyone differently, it’s important for people to understand how daily activities such as work, sleep, eating and exercise affect their diabetes management.”
Exercise is a vital part of our life and it has many benefits too. “The data show that regular moderate exercise increases your ability to battle the effects of disease,” says Marilyn Moffat, a professor of physical therapy at New York University. “It has a positive effect on both physical and mental well-being. The goal is to do as much physical activity as your body lets you do, and rest when you need to rest.”
If you have type 1 diabetes and are not exercising now, talk to your doctor about how to get started. Over time, a sense of accomplishment, better sleep, less pain and enhanced satisfaction with life can become further reasons to pursue physical activity!
Central Florida scientists are saying that citrus crops like grapefruits and grapes contain a compound that could help the diets of diabetes patients and even prevent it. Two scientists discovered a compound called emulin while researching the weight loss properties of grapefruit. The compound is found in the peels of tropical fruits. “This product mimics the activity of insulin,” researcher Joseph Ahrens said.
The idea is to extract the compound from the peel of the fruit, filter and purify it to make a tasteless substance that acts as a sugar buffer when added to foods. Studies in Type-2 diabetic rats showed great results. Rats fed the equivalent of a brownie with emulin showed a drop in glucose by as much as 27 percent.
Emulin works by reducing the amount of carbohydrates absorbed after meals and the amount of glucose manufactured by the liver. It also speeds the removal of excess sugar from the bloodstream. It would become an additive that could be used by mainstream food manufacturers. It is believed that emulin can make eating safer for Type 2 diabetics and perhaps reduce the onset of diabetes.
Double-blinded human trials are under way now and the results should be out within a few weeks. Scientists said if the product is approved by the FDA, it could be on the market within two years.
New findings may help in efforts to develop ways to treat type 1 diabetes. An estimated 1 million to 2 million Americans have type 1 diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association. Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have been studying immune cells thought to be responsible for type 1 diabetes.
They are using diabetic mice in their research. The scientists found dendritic cells in insulin-making structures in the pancreas called the islets of Langerhans and observed them carrying insulin and fragments of insulin-producing cells known as beta cells. This can be the initial step toward the start of a misdirected immune system attack that destroys the beta cells and prevents the production of insulin, resulting in type 1 diabetes.
“Now that we’ve isolated dendritic cells from the pancreas, we can look at why they get into the pancreas and determine which of the materials that they pick up are most critical to causing this form of diabetes. That may allow us to find ways to inhibit dendritic cell function in order to block the disorder,” study senior author Dr. Emil R. Unanue, a professor of pathology, said in a prepared statement.
People with diabetes are more prone to peritonitis, tooth decay, oral fungal infections, taste diminishment, gingivitis and delayed healing time than people without the disease, according to the American Dental Association (ADA). This is because uncontrolled blood sugar levels can cause and worsen those symptoms and conditions. According to the ADA, sugary and starchy foods contribute to high glucose levels in saliva, which can wear down tooth enamel, causing decay and cavities.
Unfortunately, poor oral health can make your diabetes more difficult to control. Infections can cause your blood sugar to rise and require more insulin to keep it under control.
There are things you can do to have good oral health. You should see your dentist at least twice a year. Make sure your dentist knows that you have diabetes. Brush your teeth twice a day. It is recommended to use a soft nylon toothbrush and always brush the upper surface of your tongue. Floss everyday. Always look for early signs of gum disease, such as bleeding gums, redness, or swelling. If you notice any of these things call your dentist right away.
