Diabetes

Nine ways to make your Diwali diabetes-friendly

Dining out, indulging in greasy, spicy food, gorging on endless servings of sweets – a plethora unhealthy food is what festivities bring in, or rather what we choose for ourselves – after all celebrations come as an easy excuse for setting aside all the `DIET` plan. And this over-indulgence which can leave a normal, healthy person feeling sick and nauseated, can have drastic implications on diabetics, as for them festivities are more of a bitter than a sweet tale.

Following a strict diet plan, calculating the number of calorie intake and worst of all keeping the mouth-watering, sugar dripping confectioneries at bay can actually take the fun out of the celebrations.

So it sounds like devouring on food is something diabetics cannot and should not do. True. Considering the body’s inability to break down sugar efficiently, negligence can have grave consequences.

However, this doesn’t mean you have to restrict yourself from fun, frolic and FOOD. Don’t let the restrictions dampen the spirit of the celebration. Here are a few ways to make this Diwali diabetes-friendly:

  1. Go sugar-free: Since you are a diabetic you already know what going sugar-free means. With the chronic illness making an inroad into most of the households, the shops next door do make it a point to keep sugar free sweets for its every increasing consumer base.
  2. Check the Nutrition Facts Label: This means not only checking the sugar content but the total amount of carbohydrates that includes starch, fiber, sugar and sugar alcohols. Foods labelled sugar-free may still be harmful as it may contain carbohydrates. Since carbs break down into glucose, they may have a great impact on the blood sugar levels.
  3. Switch to natural sweeteners: Opt for natural sweeteners like dates, raisins or fruits instead of artificial ones.  Stevia, a sweet tasting natural herb, raw honey, date sugar can help keep a check on the blood sugar levels.
  4. Cook in olive oil: Switch to olive oil instead of the regular cooking oil. Olive oil is rich in monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), which are considered a healthy dietary fat. MUFs help control blood sugar levels, keep triglyceride levels in check, reduce LDL cholesterol levels, and increase HDL cholesterol levels.
  5. Follow the compensatory rule: So you have been invited to a relative’s place for dinner and the servings would be more than tempting for you to resist. Since you know in advance, compensate beforehand. Eat a low calorie, low carb, and low fat diet in the day. Keep aside your caffeine intake, opt for salads and eat in small portions. This way a bit of extra indulgence will not take a toll on your blood sugar levels. However try to go easy on rich, spicy food.  Try to eat grilled, baked food instead of fried food.
  6. Increase your physical activity: Festivities are no excuse to go easy on your exercise regime-to burn those extra calories you need to notch it up a bit. But the thought of an extra hour in the gym can dampen your festival mood. No need for an extra gym hour. Take the stairs instead of the lift, walk to your friend’s palce, take time to cook your own meal and shake a leg at the party. These easy, everyday activities help burn a lot of calories.
  7. Avoid alcohol: Alcohol interferers with the body`s ability to break down carbohydrate which can cause hypoglycemia in diabetics. Whether you are a diabetic or not controlling or avoiding alcohol intake will only do good to your health.
  8. Sharing is caring: Try to eat with a partner. Sharing means you take a smaller portion size. Don`t accumulate the sweets in the fridge. Instead share it with friends or give it away to the less privileged.
  9. Get your blood sugar tested: Keeping a check on the blood sugar levels will help you plan out your celebration accordingly. Get yourself checked before and after Diwali. Keeping a close watch can help avert a serious medical situation.

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Apps help patients with diabetes monitor their disease

Diabetics have a good deal of facts to maintain track of when it comes to their wellbeing. The good news is, there are a couple apps out there to support them take care of it all.

Glooko

Individuals can hook up this application to a exclusive cable in order to download their glucose readings to their mobile phone, allowing for them to keep an eye on their degrees on-the-go. Nevertheless the instrument is nevertheless awaiting acceptance from the U.S. Meals and Drug Administration for use as an over-the-counter remedy for diabetic issues management, patients can nevertheless obtain the application for free of charge and buy the accompanying cable for $39.ninety five.

GoMeals

Diabetics can make healthier, additional knowledgeable foodstuff choices with the assist of the GoMeals application. The totally free application is preloaded with dietary details from eating places and grocery suppliers and also contains a cafe locator so customers can uncover healthful solutions nearby. People can also employ the app’s glucose tracker to make absolutely sure they are undertaking a superior work retaining their degrees.

Carb Counting with Lenny

This kid-helpful app aids diabetic children master how to count carbs and regulate their health issues. The totally free resource is just one of numerous resources readily available for young ones on Lenny-Diabetes.com.

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U.S. approves first artificial pancreas system for diabetics

U.S. approves first artificial pancreas system for diabetics

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the first artificial pancreas system for diabetics that reads blood sugar levels and automatically shuts off the flow of insulin.

The device, made by Medtronic Inc, could help the 3 million Americans living with type 1 diabetes better manage their disease, which causes the immune system to destroy cells in the pancreas that make insulin.

Patients suffering from type 1 diabetes, the inherited version of the disease, have to regularly monitor their blood sugar levels and take insulin several times a day.

Too little or too much of insulin can lead to several health problems, ranging from kidney failure and heart disease to brain damage.

The device includes an insulin pump and a glucose sensor that stops insulin delivery when blood glucose reaches a preset level.

The system has been approved for use by diabetics aged 16 years and older. Medtronic said it would conduct a post-approval study that would include children aged 2 years and older.

The Minneapolis, Minnesota-based company said it would begin ramping up production immediately to prepare for a launch in the next few weeks.

The company will also directly follow up with patients and make certain manufacturing changes according to the requirements of the approval and an accompanying warning letter it was issued on Sept. 19.

Medtronic said it has already addressed many of the observations in the warning letter and was committed to resolving the remaining issues as quickly as possible.

Source: Reuters.com

Diabetes rises in China, reaching ‘alert’ level

The disease was more common in China than in the United States even though the population was slimmer

Almost 12 percent of adults in China had diabetes in 2010, with economic prosperity driving the disease to slightly higher proportions than in the United States, researchers said Tuesday.

The overall prevalence of diabetes in China in 2010 was found to be 11.6 percent of adults — 12.1 percent in men, and 11 percent in women, according to the study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

In the United States, about 11.3 percent of people over 20 have diabetes according to 2011 data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The disease was more common in China than in the United States even though the population was slimmer — average body mass index, a ratio of height and body weight, was just 23.7 in China compared to 28.7 in the United States.

“The prevalence of diabetes has increased significantly in recent decades,” said the JAMA study.

“These data suggest that diabetes may have reached an alert level in the Chinese general population, with the potential for a major epidemic of diabetes-related complications, including cardiovascular disease, stroke, and chronic kidney disease in China in the near future without an effective national intervention.”

Only 30 percent of Chinese with diabetes were aware of their condition, it said.

Further, about half of the population has high blood sugar, or a condition known as pre-diabetes, according to a nationally representative sample of Chinese adults.

Diabetes has been rising in China along with the nation`s economic growth. In 1980, the prevalence of diabetes was less than one percent of the population.

The latest findings mark a more than two percentage point increase over 2007, when a national survey found a 9.7 percent prevalence of diabetes, or about 92.5 million adults.

The current data puts the total number of cases of diabetes in China at 113.9 million.

Worldwide, diabetes affects about 8.3 percent of the global population, or 371 million people.

“China is now among the countries with the highest diabetes prevalence in Asia and has the largest absolute disease burden of diabetes in the world,” said the study.

The Chinese survey included more than 98,650 people and was led by Guang Ning, head of the Shanghai Institute of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases and colleagues with the 2010 China Non-communicable Disease Surveillance Group.

Diabetes was more common in urban areas and among young and middle aged people who were overweight or obese, and was found to be increasing along with economic development.

The research suggested that one cause for the growing trend could be poor nutrition among pregnant women and young babies, combined with overeating later in life.

Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of the disease, and can be managed with improved nutrition and exercise, as well as medication if needed.

According to an accompanying editorial in JAMA by Juliana Chan of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, “rapid modernization” has fuelled an environment that encourages diabetes “characterized by food abundance, physical inactivity, and psychosocial stress.”

The CDC says that diabetes is a top cause of blindness, kidney failure and amputations of the legs and feet, and was the seventh leading cause of death in the US in 2007.

One in three US adults will have diabetes by 2050 if current trends continue, according to the CDC.

The disease is characterized by the body`s shortage of insulin, or an inability to use the hormone efficiently for converting glucose into energy.

Source: http://zeenews.india.com/news/health/health-news/diabetes-rises-in-china-reaching-alert-level_23744.html