Type 2 Diabetes - The Effect Of Diabetic Medications On Heart And Blood Vessel Disease!

Heart and blood vessel diseases are amongst the worst known complications associated with Type 2 diabetes. People diagnosed with this form of diabetes are prone to high cholesterol and blood fat levels which can cause blood vessels to become clogged.

When the coronary arteries become clogged, the heart muscle itself can become starved for oxygen and various nutrients. When that happens, the heart can slow down or beat with less force, or both. When the heart is unable to pump blood in sufficient quantities to feed the needs of the rest of the body, congestive heart failure develops. Blood that is unable to enter the heart because of congestion, backs up into the lungs which then become congested with fluid.

Exenatide, or Byetta, is a medication that mimics a kind of hormone known as an incretin. It stimulates the pancreas to release more insulin when the food just eaten starts to raise the blood sugar. So, Byetta stimulates insulin secretion when blood sugars have actually risen after your meal, and the insulin secretion should stop when they drop. It also decreases the production of sugar by the liver.

The latest studies on exenatide (Byetta) show that it could also prove a valuable tool in fighting heart disease.

In one such study, published in January 2012 in the journal Diabetologia, investigators at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden looked at how much blood the hearts of people with Type 2 diabetes were able to pump with and without exenatide. Twenty people with Type 2 diabetes were included in the study...
the hearts of these diabetics were found to be able to pump more blood while they took exenatide (Byetta) than when they took a placebo.this was because their hearts were able to beat faster. Pressure in their lungs was also reduced because the blood was able to flow out of their lungs and into their heart in a timely manner.

It was therefore concluded more study is definitely warranted on the effects of the drug exenatide on the heart.

Britain's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published in October 2011 recommendations for the clinical use of Bydureon, a long-acting form of exenatide. The long-acting form of this particular medication must be injected only once. In January 2012 Bydureon was included in NICE's formulary for the National Health Service.

A study called EXSCEL, which includes more than 9000 diabetics, is scheduled to be completed in the year 2017. It aims to discover what use exenatide (Byetta) might have for the prevention and treatment of heart disease.

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

Diabetic Strength Training, Why You Need It and Why You Need to Be Careful

Diabetic strength training is not talked about as much as walking, biking and running, but for a type 2 diabetic the benefits of this kind of workout are tremendous. Whether your goal is to lose weight or to get back on your feet, diabetic strength training will help you get there.

But because we older diabetics have problems like peripheral and autonomic neuropathy, we need to be careful with any new kind of exercise, and that goes double for strength training. Do it wrong and you'll injure yourself.

What Diabetic Strength Training Is, and What It Is Not

Walking, biking, swimming, elliptical training and jogging are called aerobic exercise. You need to do them for long periods of time, but not to the point that you feel sore afterward. Anything from 30 minutes to an hour or more is possible. But you should be able to talk while doing this kind of exercise.

It's easy to measure how many calories you use for aerobic exercise because of the steady pace and length of time. Free apps (applications for phones and computers) and websites like Fitness Pal and the American Diabetes Association can tell you approximately how many calories you burn during exercise if you have a weight loss goal.

Diabetic strength training, on the other hand, uses a different kind of energy called the glycolytic system. It does not use oxygen, so it's called anaerobic. The system uses the breakdown of glucose for energy, and that can only be done in short bursts.

Weight lifters, baseball players, gymnasts and sprinters use this kind of energy. They have to rest between the bursts of speed or effort because glucose breakdown lasts for seconds up to a couple of minutes. That is why strength trainers talk about repetitions and sets with periods of rest in between.

Comparing the Benefits of Aerobic Exercise and Diabetic Strength Training

Walking and other aerobic exercise strengthens your heart, raises your good cholesterol, lowers blood pressure and burns calories. It has also been proven to lift you out of depression. I know for a fact that it does all of those.

So why do you need diabetic strength training? Because it will build your bone and skeletal muscle strength. That means fewer falls and injuries because you have better balance. Your coordination improves and you can move around more easily.

And there's more. Strength training increases your metabolic rate, the speed at which your body burns calories. You are replacing fat with muscle, and muscles burn more calories. This is true even if your actual weight on the scales does not change.

More muscle mass will have a great impact on insulin resistance, which research has proved is worsened by excess body fat around your organs. You will find it easier to lose weight and keep it off.

On The Biggest Loser television show, trainers use a combination of aerobic and strength training along with diet. And every diabetic contestant ends the competition off of diabetic medications. It works.

Some Don'ts for Starting Diabetic Strength Training

Don't ever start a new exercise program without talking to your doctor. The longer you've had diabetes the more likely the complications of peripheral neuropathy have made your feet and legs less sensitive to injury.

And autonomic neuropathy means you can't depend on your pulse to tell you how much stress you are putting on your heart. You'll have to use how you feel, whether you are able to breathe through each exercise.

If you have neuropathies your doctor might suggest exercise that does not depend on good balance to protect you from falling injuries. Things like biking with resistance (you could try a spin class), swimming, rowing and arm exercises are the kinds of things you can do safely.

Cooling down after exercise is more important with autonomic neuropathy too. Your blood pressure might drop fast when you finish your workout, and the cool down period gives it time to adjust. If you feel dizzy at any time you need to talk to your doctor about it.

Don't exercise without your diabetic shoes and socks. Don't forget to check your feet before and after exercise for trouble spots, because your feet won't tell you where blisters are forming.

If you exercise outside, autonomic neuropathy won't allow you to do it in high heat or if it's really cold. And the importance of drinking water before exercise can't be overstated. Don't skip that step. Make sure you are wearing your diabetic identification jewelry and that you have water at your side if you are planning to work out more than an hour or so.

Strength training starts slow, so don't overdo it and hurt your muscles. Don't skip the warm-up and don't do one exercise over and over. Vary the muscles you use. Don't hold your breath. Trainers teach you to breathe through every exercise.

Don't do diabetic strength training every day. A day or two of rest between sessions gives muscles a chance to build up. Rest days are an important part of the whole process of raising skeletal muscle strength.

There are many websites with videos that will help you learn sets of exercises. Some use weights that you hold and others use elastic bands or wrist and ankle weights you strap on. With diabetic strength training, technique is everything.

A trainer will explain how many repetitions of each exercise you should do and when to stop. And he or she will teach you how to alternate the muscles you work on so you won't leave any out.

That's why it's best to start with a trainer either through a video or, better yet, at an exercise class at the Y or a fitness gym, at least until you have learned a good routine.

You might find that you enjoy yoga or Pilates, both of which build what they call core strength, the skeletal muscles you depend on every day to go through daily activities with ease.

A few minutes every other day for diabetic strength training is going to pay you back in huge benefits. I think it's worth a try. By the way, if you have found a good exercise program I'd love to hear about it.

"We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." Einstein

Diabetic Supplement Warnings, Using Common Sense

Diabetic supplement warnings did not concern me when I went looking for a diabetes cure. If I had read something in a book, I simply believed it. And today online supplement ads are growing as fast as type 2 diabetes.

We have such a strong need to find answers that we want to believe what we are told. Fear of dying mixed with distrust of the whole medical establishment makes a feeding ground for a whole new industry of supplement sellers disguised as information websites.

An Example Taken From the News

The newspapers in San Antonio on January 2, 2012, reported the arrest of two men who were running a stem cell scam that targeted people with terminal illnesses, promising to save their lives.

Apparently they gave the impression that their stem cells had been approved by the FDA. Of course, it was not true, but the men took in about $1.5 million from hopeful victims of ALS, cancers and other incurable diseases.

One of the men, who called himself a doctor, was profiled on the TV show Sixty Minutes in 2010 because of the promise of healing with stem cells. Now he is wanted by the FBI.

This illustrates the need for wisdom. There is nothing wrong with looking for a cure, but caution and common sense have to be your constant companions.

Anything that really works is going to be trumpeted to the skies in these days of free internet access. If something helps I think a real cure will show up everywhere, not just in some obscure site that claims there is a conspiracy to silence them.

Outright lies are only one of the dangers you and I face as we look for natural things to help us with type 2 diabetes. Here is another of the diabetic supplement warnings you should heed.

Diabetic Supplement Warnings About Overmedicating

You are aware of the dangers of taking too much medication, right? Of course you are. But anything that is taken into your body can damage and even kill you if you use too much. Water, salt and oxygen are examples. Pick any one of those and look at the side effects of overdoing it.

Anything is lethal if you take it in a large enough dose. One world-famous medical examiner who has her own TV show was looking into a mysterious death and found that the woman had overdosed on vitamin supplements.

This was an extreme case, and it took a huge amount over some time, but she was able to take enough supplements to die from them. It is true that death by vitamin overdose is rare at about 1 in 40,000 accidental poisoning reports.

Vitamins are complex. Many of them work well together. For instance, calcium is absorbed better if you take it with some vitamin D, and it doesn't take a lot. Vitamin C increases your absorption of iron, and many GI doctors who diagnose anemia tell their patients to take orange juice with their iron supplement.

The multivitamin producers who understand how vitamins work together can give you a daily pill or liquid that uses this information. Find a good company and it'll be easy to supplement your daily vitamins without having to figure out safe and adequate dosing by yourself.

B-complex and C are water soluble vitamins, and they are not stored in your body, so any you don't use is filtered out through your kidneys. Fat soluble vitamins like A and D, however, are stored in your fat cells, so it is possible to overload your body with them.

That does not mean take all the Bs and C you want. Anything that makes your liver and kidneys work harder puts stress on a system that already is dealing with type 2 diabetes complications. So it makes sense not to overdo even the water soluble vitamins.

Another fact - all vitamins and minerals are better for us in their natural vegetable form. But the synthetic vitamins labs crank out are cheaper. And the metallic minerals are often used in supplements because they are cheap and readily available.

So eating superfoods in the form of vegetables and fruits as well as whole grains and unprocessed meat is the best way to get your vitamins and minerals. There is a page about the superfoods on my website if you want to find out more.

Diabetic Supplement Warnings About Cinnamon

While researching the benefits of cinnamon, which seem well documented, I found out that there is more than one kind. One is called cassia and another is Ceylon or "true" cinnamon. Since Ceylon cinnamon is more expensive you'll probably have to find it at a health food store.

The one we are most familiar with is the hot, spicy cassia cinnamon we get from our local grocery store. Its heat comes from coumarin, and this substance has effects you need to understand if you are going to use it as a daily supplement and not just a flavoring.

A few people are allergic to cinnamon, developing swollen lips and ulcerations. If this happens to you, you should not use it as a supplement. But that allergy is pretty rare and is not the reason some Europeans are warning people not to use it.

Coumarin was used in the form of bicoumarin as a chemical model for the medication warfarin, brand name Coumadin, because it has amazing blood thinning properties. Bicoumarin caused free bleeding in rats; it kept their blood from clotting.

Coumarin has been banned as a food additive in the U.S. because of this. Of course it is going to be hard to get enough coumarin to do any damage of that magnitude in the cinnamon you sprinkle on food, and research says it does not turn into bicoumarin in a human body as it did in rats.

But if you plan to take cinnamon pills long-term for diabetic blood sugar reduction, be aware that cassia cinnamon has coumarin at a 5% ratio, while Ceylon cinnamon has a 0.004% ratio, practically none.

Since cinnamon really does have an insulin type reaction in your body it will lower blood sugar a certain amount. But if you use it, know what you are getting and how your body will react. Talk to your doctor about it and tell her how much you are using. And watch your blood sugar carefully.

There is a lot of interest in coumarin as a cancer medication, and we'll keep watching it closely to see what happens next. Coumarin may be something you actually want to be taking, but the amount that's safe has not been determined yet.

We Need Diabetic Supplement Warnings

Our desire to find things that will cure, or at least help control, our type 2 diabetes has to be balanced with an equal amount of common sense and caution. And I have learned that no supplement provides a way around the need for exercise and a healthy diet. This is the proven road to remission for a type 2 diabetic.

It is the road I have chosen, although I am going to try taking Ceylon cinnamon for a month or so and see what it does for my blood sugar control. Everyone is different, and one person's success with cinnamon may not be matched by another. Still, I will report what happens on my website.

If you are doing the same I would be excited to hear what your results have been. Let's find the way through type 2 diabetes together.

Type 2 Diabetes - Diabetic Foot Infections

Unfortunately infections are common for people with either Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, especially in the lower extremities. In fact, foot infections rank as the most common of all. But why the foot? How serious of a problem can foot infections become? And what can be done to avoid them?

The good news is an ounce of prevention right now is worth pounds of cure in the future when it comes to your feet and toes. Feet are often neglected during the day when we take them over all types of terrain and squash them into unsuitable shoes.

The reason infections are so much more of a problem for diabetics than they are for non-diabetics, is because of several different factors. One reason has to do with the fact many diabetics have a sedentary lifestyle, meaning they have little or no physical activity. This helps to lead to poor circulation of their feet and can advance to a serious state before the diabetic is even aware they have a problem.

Another problem is many diabetics do not maintain healthy blood sugar levels. The elevated sugar then goes to work to cause a myriad of complications. One is a buildup of plaque in the arteries that restricts blood flow. Another is the excess amount of sugar in the bloodstream which attacks and begins to destroy nerve endings, most commonly in the legs and especially in the feet.

But the worst way is how the body reacts to foot infections. In a normal setting, the body would sense an infection and immediately send white blood cells to begin repairing the infected area. But since a diabetic has impaired circulation, the number of phagocytic cells (cells that attack and destroy bacteria), are greatly decreased. This means there is a very limited amount of antibodies available to help the infected tissue.

Even the type of infection can range in severity. Foot infections can start with soft tissue infections and progress to severe, chronic infections involving both tissue and bone. From there, they can increase to peripheral vascular disease which involves the large blood vessels and then infections which advance to gangrene.

Not only are the infections more severe as compared to infections non-diabetics develop, but they also take much longer to control and cure. If conditions are not drastically improved and the infection dealt with in an aggressive and consistent manner, there is the probability the foot, or at the very least part of the foot, would have to be amputated.

There are many cases where part of the foot is removed, the infection continues to spread and another amputation is needed in order to stop progression of the damage.

The best way to limit the possibility of developing a foot infection is to thoroughly inspect your feet each day. There is no greater act of prevention than awareness. If necessary use a magnifying glass... some pharmacies carry a device which is a long stick with a magnifying lens on the end (this would make it much easier to view the sole of your foot). And use a good light! Take special note of skin color, temperature, sensation, or changes in the integrity of the skin. Don't forget to check between each of your toes. As well as feeling great, foot massages can help with circulation also.

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

Type 2 Diabetes - Dealing With Depression As A Diabetic

Receiving a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes often comes along with other issues such as depression. Getting depressed or having a long-term chronic illness can get the best of anyone. However, you don't have to live with depression if you know how to combat it effectively.

Here are some ideas about overcoming depression when you have diabetes.

First of all, if your depression lasts more than just a few days at a time, you should see a professional. It's very important you maintain good mental health in your life, so seeing a professional counselor or psychiatrist doesn't mean that you are weak. It simply means you need the help and assistance of someone who's more experienced and qualified in the subject of depression. Once you have seen someone for this condition, you will be better equipped to deal with it.

So, what is depression? When someone is continually affected by stressful circumstances, it's not unusual to find depression develop. The basic feelings of depression are feeling hopeless and helpless. These feelings usually occur when a situation is continually seen as an uncontrollable threat. This threat can be real or imagined and as long as the threat persists, the reaction corresponds with a type of depression. This depression can vary from feeling down to being unable to perform daily basic functions and where diabetes is concerned, this means depression makes the effective management of diabetes almost impossible

If you know someone who has gone through depression, make sure to chat with them about it. Getting the viewpoint of other people is very important when it comes to dealing with anxiety disorders and other mental issues. Having depression doesn't mean that you're crazy. Lots of people go through this at some point during their lives. Sometimes it comes on as a result of stress while other times it can come on out of nowhere.

It is not unusual for depression to cause other problems. For example, the increase of alcohol and sugary foods. As a diabetic and a depressed person, it is important you avoid alcohol and other sugary foods and drinks. This is because sugar causes major blood sugar swings in your body. When your blood sugar dips too high or too low, it can have an immense effect on your emotions and mood. In addition, it can cause other complications and problems with your Type 2 diabetes and blood sugar. The last thing you want to do is have more problems with your diabetes.

Support Groups: Finally, it's important to understand you are not alone in this journey. There are many support groups and other ways of getting help when you have depression. If you feel like you can't leave the house or get out of bed in the mornings, you may need some medication just to get you over the hump. Once you take part in counseling, you'll be able to find some other means of coping. There are tools that can assist you in managing your stress and depression, skills that will give you better control of your diabetes and life in general.

It's completely possible you won't have to be on medication for the rest of your life. But, even if you do, it's more important you have a happy life even if it involves taking medication to help you.

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

Type 2 Diabetic Guilt, Blaming and Shaming

Type 2 diabetic guilt and shame seem to be expected of someone who has been diagnosed with this chronic disease in the U.S. The message has never been more clear than it was when the famous TV chef Paula Deen revealed that she had been diagnosed a type 2 diabetic.

Whatever her motives for what she does, many media persons have been extremely hateful in their attacks, using emotional words that are meant to wound. The problem is that it is not Paula Deen who is reading the poison they are pouring out.

And what if she is cooking with butter and passing along recipes for fried food on her very popular cooking show? Has someone actually proven that using butter causes obesity and diabetes? I've looked at a lot of research, and the facts are saying something different.

Type 2 Diabetic Guilt, the Damage

The damage done by attacking someone who is diabetic shows when you read the blogs on diabetic websites. Type 1's are separating themselves from type 2's because they don't want to be lumped in with the "fat slobs" who let themselves get a preventable disease.

And the type 2 diabetic guilt comes out in the voices of people who write that they are too ashamed of their diagnosis to tell anyone about it. What good does it do to tell them the facts?

Type 1 and type 2 diabetics are highly influenced by peer opinion, and that is especially true of younger ones. Diabulimia and other eating disorders are shortening the lives of diabetics just when research is coming up with better ways to handle the disease.

No one knows why one obese person slips into type 2 diabetes while another does not. And normal weight type 2 diabetics exist too. Genetics has a lot to do with it, but how much? Experts are not sure.

Meanwhile type 2 diabetic guilt has been turned up several notches. And most of us have plenty of things already to feel bad about. We've made choices that could have been better. But haven't the people who point a loud accusing finger at Paula Deen made some bad choices too?

Type 2 Diabetic Guilt and Shame, the Danger

I am a type 2 diabetic. I know what guilt and shame are, and I know what they do. Shame will never help anyone to change. Books have been written by psychologists who observe the damage. Teachers who use shame on their students get fired when they are caught.

Shame gives the message "I am a bad person." There is no cure for that, if you believe it. And it is a small step from guilt to shame for many. Those who judge others for diabetes and obesity take no account of the causes, and the ones who suffer the most are young people, who are more easily affected by what others say.

That is why attacking someone for their disease is so dangerous. A lot of type 2 diabetics are listening, and some of us have a hard time with not only the words but the spirit of hatred behind the attack.

Eating disorders, depression and chronic stress will make diabetes worse. Not only that, but they undermine the desire to change. Shame heaps more fuel on these problems. It does not help, never has, never will.

Guilt is saying "I made a mistake," and it is a needed step in making changes, but it is not a place to live. We have to admit our mistakes without trying to lay blame on someone else. Then the door is open to endless possible roads we can take.

The danger with type 2 diabetic guilt lies in the strong desire to lay blame. Most people who enjoy pointing fingers at others have fallen into the blame trap because they have not faced their own guilt. But blaming others will never help you feel less guilty for your own mistakes.

What To Do About Type 2 Diabetic Guilt

Becoming prediabetic came from my genetic make-up. The mistakes I made came from ignoring that fact. And when I was diagnosed type 2 diabetic guilt and shame dragged me into depression that I lived in for years.

Now that I have faced my mistakes, learned about this condition and begun to change, I feel a future open with choices. I already know some will be good and some will not. But wallowing in shame and trying to blame someone else are two things I won't waste time doing.

If you are a type 1 diabetic, a healthy diet and exercise will help you live a long and healthy life. And the same holds true for a type 2 diabetic. Because you are more vulnerable to complications and viruses like hepatitis B and flu, it becomes important to keep your immune system strong.

Staying away from AGEs and SOFAs will do that for you, simply by avoiding fast food and eating whole foods that don't have all the good things processed out. Add the superfoods with antioxidants to your diet, and make exercise a daily goal.

Take care of your diabetic chores - blood sugar testing, glucose monitor maintenance, regular visits to your doctor for kidney, liver and other blood tests, and inspecting your feet every day - those will increase your chances of dodging many of the complications.

Don't waste a minute regretting the past or letting someone's words pull you down into shame. Loving family and good friends will help you keep your perspective, and keeping your eyes on the needs of others will do the same. I wish you well.

Martha Zimmer invites you to visit her website and learn more about type 2 diabetes, its complications and how you can deal with them, as well as great tips for eating healthy that will make living with diabetes less painful.

Chiropractic Treatments Prove Beneficial to Diabetic Patients

Many researchers believe that chiropractic adjustments can help reduce the seriousness or even cure many seemingly incurable diseases like diabetes. The well respected Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research published a study about the positive response in a patient with medically diagnosed adult onset diabetes. The chiropractor corrected spinal misalignments or vertebral subluxations which in turn corrected imbalances between the organs and the nervous system. Exercise guidance and nutritional advice were also part of the program. Remarkably, after just one month, the patient had normal blood glucose levels that remained stable over time. According to his medical doctor, insulin would not be required as long as this condition remained stable.

The outcome of chiropractic treatment on a diabetic patient can be quite amazing. The scientific literature has acknowledged that interference with the spinal nerves can be a major contributing factor of metabolic and endocrine disorders such as diabetes. In fact, spinal injury has been named as a primary cause of diabetes. When the nerves that supply the digestive organs are stressed in the thoracic area, the organs do not operate properly in the body. For example, the pancreas normally produces insulin to control blood sugar, but if the insulin is rendered ineffective, diabetes can result. The problem is usually found in the 5th to 10th thoracic vertebrae which are what the chiropractor would adjust during treatment. A properly working nervous system is essential to the well-being and proper functioning of the body.

Another case study was recently published in the Journal of Pediatric, Maternal, & Family Health. This study dealt with a four year old girl suffering from Insulin-Dependent Type I Diabetes. She was treated for vertebral subluxations in the thoracic and cervical regions of the spine. After 24 chiropractic visits over two months, the patient demonstrated a dramatic decrease in her A1C levels from 7.2 percent to 6.5 percent and the amount of insulin used on a daily basis went from 15 units to 11 units. Up to this point the scientific literature has stated that successful lowering of A1C levels below 7.0 percent was nonexistent. By optimizing neural connections in the body through chiropractic care, the systems of the body can work together for better health. Your nervous system will function better which lets the digestive and endocrine systems work better so that your body can fight disease more effectively. We have seen the positive impact that adjustments can have on patient suffering from other debilitating conditions such as mental illness, high blood pressure, migraines and many more at Integrative Physical Medicine and look forward to treating many more.

Diabetic Cooking - Tips To Help Learn How To Cook This Healthy Lifestyle Called The Diabetic Diet

Many newly diagnosed diabetics, pre-diabetics, even long-time diabetics, dread the thought of learning about diabetic cooking, believing they're facing years of boring and unsatisfying meals that will take a good deal of the pleasure out of their lives. And, unfortunately, a lot of people who have been living with diabetes for years, actually are leading boring and unsatisfying food lives and they do take a lot less pleasure in their food than before their diagnosis. The good news is that they can eat interesting and exciting food, spicy food, delicious food and can regain the pleasure of eating food that really is satisfying along with the knowledge that the diabetic diet they're following is also a healthy diet that everyone, diabetic or not, should be eating.

It's going to take some effort and some experimentation. You're going to have to learn some new things, do some research, and you're going to have to be willing to spend some time in the kitchen trying out recipes and tasting the results as you discover what you like and what works for you. But it's absolutely within your power to eat well despite your diabetes for years to come.

Now with over 29 million diabetics and a lot of talented creative and generous people out there, you're going to find an unbelievable amount of resources such as ingredients, recipes, advice and support available. These talented cooks have taken on the challenge of making food that's good for diabetics, and food that people really want to eat. There's even a whole magazine devoted to diabetic cooking called, unsurprisingly, Diabetic Cooking. There are also diabetic cooking classes available, and some are free.

Here are some basics for diabetic cooking:
First, you will be avoiding simple sugars, fats, sodium, carbohydrates which release their glucose quickly. You're including lots of fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, and more fish.
Second, because you're at risk for serious complications, including heart and kidney problems, you're eating a heart-healthy diet, which is lower in saturated fat, dietary cholesterol and most importantly low sodium.
Third, you're eating an appropriate number of calories and limiting your portion sizes. Obesity increases your risk of developing diabetes in the first place and can bring other health problems along with it. If you're obese losing weight can help prevent pre-diabetes from developing into diabetes.
Fourth, you're trying to keep your blood glucose level in a narrow and healthy area throughout the day. Therefore, you will want to eat foods which release glucose slowly (that is, foods with a low glycemic index). You're also eating smaller portions more frequently. Some diabetics eat four or even six smaller meals each day. Or three regular meals and frequent snacks. You're also making efforts to follow a consistent eating schedule, eating at the same times each day.

Start reducing or eliminating the amount of sugar and salt in a recipe. Learn to substitute with herbs, spices and other flavorings instead. Choose fresh or frozen (no salt added) over canned foods, which tend to be high in sodium and can be high in sugars also.

Today, there are a more sugar-free and salt-free ingredients like seasonings available. These tips will help you make your diabetic cooking easier, tastier and healthier while following the diabetic diet.

And now for more low sodium tips and information I invite you to sign up for our FREE Season It Newsletter when you visit Benson's Gourmet Seasonings at http://www.bensonsgourmetseasonings.com/

Click here to get more free information about low sodium, including a low sodium diet, low sodium cooking tips, salt free seasonings, salt substitutes and low sodium recipes. You'll learn how you can use seasonings, fresh herbs, fresh fruits & vegetables, olive oil, nuts, vinegars, wine and different cooking techniques to flavor your food without adding salt and sugar. You'll find out how to get more flavor than you ever thought possible.

Diabetic Friendly Energy Drinks - Don't Make This Common Mistake

Truly diabetic friendly energy drinks are quite rare when your standard is scientific fact.

It is a big challenge for diabetics to find an energy drink that is 1) Delicious; 2) Able to work with the body to produce a natural, sustained energy; and 3) Made with ingredients that are scientifically proven to be safe and non-toxic. This is a big order and most manufacturers fail to get all three elements right.

It is a tall order to formulate a tasty diabetic friendly drink without using either a large amount of sugar or artificial sweeteners, but it can be done.

The average diabetic knows that too much sugar can make their condition worse, so the natural assumption is that a sugar-free beverage is safe for them. Unfortunately, scientific research into artificial sweeteners has over the past few years shown this is not true.

Artificial sweeteners, strangely enough, have been shown to increase appetite for hours -- even though they don't contain any calories.

How it works is this: The taste buds alert the stomach that we are drinking something sweet, so the stomach is alerted that there will be calories on the way to it soon. When the sweet calories don't arrive, the stomach sends a message to the subconscious mind saying, "Find me some calories!"

In addition to that flaw, artificial sweeteners also cause increased insulin production, which is the last thing a diabetic needs.

It is unfortunate that the American Diabetes Association has taken money from the makers of artificial sweeteners, so they aren't willing to tell you the unpleasant truth about Aspartame and Sucralose. I just checked their Web site and they are still telling diabetics that it's okay to use a wide assortment of artificial sweeteners.

They must not have read this news article: "Just Desserts: Artificial Sweeteners Linked to Weight Gain", 2-11-08, Scientific American Magazine.

Few companies are willing to spend more on non-caloric sweeteners in order to "get it right" and deliver both satisfying taste as well as not causing further insult to the diabetic's compromised immune system.

Another way that manufacturer take advantage of diabetic consumers is by using caffeine to give "energy", when there are more pleasant, non-jittery, long-lasting sources of stimulation. Guarana is a much more pleasing source of energy, but it costs more and thus is seldom used.

Finally, there is a fourth area where diabetics get taken advantage of: The Price!

Prices of these specialty beverages for diabetics are often quite high because manufacturers have limited competition and thus, no incentive to keep prices down. Since they are selling to a market segment that desperately craves more energy, it is common to charge a premium price (and get it!).

So, even though the makers of energy drinks they claim are diabetic friendly use less expensive artificial sweeteners and cheaper caffeine for their energy booster, they still charge a premium price for a less-satisfying product.

The makers of so-called "diabetic friendly energy drinks" are -- in most cases -- not delivering truth in advertising.

Since I have diabetes on both sides of my family, it is very important to me to find Diabetic Friendly Energy Drinks that could safely help me control my weight and boost energy levels. Click the link to see the two brands I found that worked.

Buy Diabetic Supplies For Medication Purposes

A person who needs to buy diabetic supplies is maybe a sufferer of diabetes or he takes care of someone who is a sufferer. There are various ways to battle such disease yet it would be more advisable town the right supplies. If you like to monitor your condition and want to know if the medications are taking effect or not then the monitoring devices are needed. A person who suffers on it is actually paranoid at times. Perhaps, he is just worried of his conditions or he simply want to be totally cured. There is no such thing as the perfect medication for diabetes yet there are devices that aid in treatment.

There are various ways to buy diabetic supplies. You can choose to buy online since stores are operating 24/7 so you won't get pressured when you shop. You can also buy from a local pharmacy as long as the supplies are all new and not contaminated. You can also ask a referral from a medical practitioner maybe he knows a store wherein you can avail the right supplies for more affordable rates. Make sure you get the right devices so you can take control of the medication and at the same time, you can minimize errors.

There might be various medications for diabetes yet you should find the best one. You can't do it alone but you can do it with the professional intervention. Commonly, these supplies are prescribed by the doctors. They are not just bought without any reason. Once you are given the names of those supplies, make a personal research aside. For sure, the doctor has told you about that supply, why you need it and how to use it. But, you still need to supply yourself with other valuable information. Perhaps, you can read an article or you can be a member of the larger forum. Medications should be properly administered using the right devices.

If you can buy diabetic supplies for medication purposes then you should be more serious in administering treatment. You should know the proper use of these supplies before you start administering them on your own. Maintain hygiene. Store supplies appropriately when not in use or better if you can provide a safe storage. Retrieve them only when needed. This time, you don't really need to be in the clinic or hospital just to have your medications or check-up because you can do such things even at home.

Diabetic Neuropathy and Nutritional Supplements

If you have insulin dependent diabetes, you know you need to take insulin to keep your blood sugar under control. You've probably also been told to exercise. And you've definitely been told to watch your diet - especially when it comes to sugar. What you might not realize is that there are nutritional supplements and vitamins you can take to help control your blood sugar as well. And many of these supplements can also help with the effects of diabetic neuropathy - one of the chief contributors to amputations in diabetic patients.

The number of clinical studies that show adding key nutrients to the health care regimen of diabetic neuropathy patients is growing constantly.

Granted, these nutritional supplements will not take the place of proper diet, controlling your blood sugar and a sound exercise plan, but they can definitely improve the effectiveness of all of these pieces of the diabetic neuropathy puzzle.

What You Should Look For in Nutritional Supplements

As a patient with diabetic neuropathy, your requirements in nutritional supplements are different than those of other people. While many companies use the convenience of their once-a-day multivitamin as a selling point, a pill you take only once a day is only going to be really effective for the two hours after take it. You need more than that for the symptoms of your diabetic neuropathy.

To get the full effect for treating your diabetic neuropathy, you need to maintain a steady therapeutic level of these vitamins and nutrients throughout the day to help keep your blood sugar under control.

Choose supplements that you take at last three times a day to keep the levels steady in your blood stream.

And look for nutritional supplements that come from an FDA approved manufacturer to ensure that what you're taking is pharmaceutical grade.

Which Vitamin Supplements You Should Take

There is so much information on the market now about nutritional supplements and vitamins. Don't go out there and buy vitamins without being prepared. Do your research and talk to a specialist like your favorite clinician to make sure you're taking the right vitamins for your specific diabetic neuropathy symptoms. We have a very specific protocol in our clinics.

Here's a quick cheat sheet of the Top 12 vitamins and nutrients for diabetic neuropathy treatment to help you identify some of the essential supplements that can help your diabetic neuropathy and exactly what they do:

Thiamin (Vitamin B1) - helps maintain healthy oxygen levels in the blood stream which means that you less chance of nerve damage due to poor oxygen levels reaching the nerves. The Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of thiamine for the average person is 1.0 to 2.4 mg per day but diabetic neuropathy patients should take in the range of 60 mg per day in equally divided doses.

Riboflavin (Vitamin B2) - works in combination with Vitamin B6 to help your body use glucose properly. The RDA is 1.2 to 1.6 mg per day but therapeutic levels should be around 60 mg per day.

Vitamin B6 - along with folic acid and B12, it helps prevent nerve damage and heart attacks. It can also help prevent diabetic blindness and/or vision loss. Therapeutic levels should be at least 60 mg per day but be very careful with your dosage. Some toxicity has been reported with extremely high levels of B6.

Vitamin B12 - works with folic acid to help prevent stroke and loss of limbs due to diabetic neuropathy. It also helps relieve neuropathy pain.

Biotin - when taken in combination with chromium, biotin (a B vitamin) helps insulin work more effectively, keeps the pancreas working well, and lowers blood sugar levels.

Chromium - when taken with biotin, helps insulin work better, keeps the pancreas working well and lowers blood sugar levels.

Copper - helps protect the cells in the pancreas that make insulin healthy, helps prevent diabetes related damage to blood vessels and nerves and lowers blood sugar levels.

Folic Acid - works with B12 to help prevent strokes and loss of limbs due to diabetic neuropathy.

Magnesium - helps relieve diabetic neuropathy pain and helps insulin work more effectively.

Manganese - helps prevent damage to blood vessels and nerves.

Selenium - sometimes called an insulin imitator, selenium helps take blood sugar into the cells. Selenium protects against blood vessel and nerve damage from elevated blood sugar levels, two of the contributing factors in diabetic neuropathy.

Zinc - helps blood sugar get into the cells and insulin work more efficiently.

These supplements, when used properly and under the care and supervision of your own clinician, can help improve your diabetic neuropathy symptoms and lessen the chances of permanent nerve damage and eventual amputation.

But take note - these supplements will not take the place of eating properly and exercising. They work in combination with a healthier lifestyle, not in place of it.

And never self prescribe vitamins supplements and nutrients. Work with your clinician to arrive at the levels you need for your particular diabetic neuropathy and blood sugar control issues. As with many other things, too much of a good thing can do more harm than good if not properly regulated and monitored by a specialist.

And never self prescribe vitamins supplements and nutrients. Work with you NeuropathyDR® clinician to arrive at the levels you need for your particular diabetic neuropathy and blood sugar control issues. As with many other things, too much of a good thing can do more harm than good if not properly regulated and monitored by a specialist.

Food List For Diabetics To Eat - Diabetic Diet Plan

Diabetic diet plan is not complete without these four essential categories of food. If a diabetic person eats food that help him to metabolize sugar, trigger insulin sensitivity, protect him from glycation and lower down oxidative stress; he can achieve his goals of maintaining normal blood sugar levels.

Here is the food list for diabetics to eat

Metabolizers

Diabetic diet plan must include ingredients that help to restore the metabolism process of sugar. Excessive blood sugar triggers dangerous reactions that start to destroy the body. There are certain foods that help to restore process of sugar metabolism.

The following spices and foods are good metabolizers:

1- Basil

2- Cinnamon

3- Green beans

4- Broccoli

5- Apples

6- Sprouted beans

7- Whole wheat bread

It is good to add either 1 or 2 servings in each major meal.

Promoters

The trademark of diabetes type 2 is insulin resistance. Insulin helps the intake of sugar by the cells of the body. Nutritional promotion of insulin sensitivity help the medications to work better.

Following is the list of good promoters for diabetes:

1- Lean red meat

2- Cabbage

3- Collard green

4- Brewer's yeast

A diabetic diet plan that provides 6 to 7 ounces of lean cut of red meat with plenty of green vegetables provides a good dose of insulin promoters.

Reducers

Excessive blood sugar levels creat extreme oxidative stress. If blood sugar isn't properly metabolized then blood sugar quickly changes itself into reactive molecules that damage the body. Reducers are also termed antioxidants. Antioxidant foods are those that could lower down the oxidative stress by mopping reactive metabolites of sugar. The key step in the treatment of diabetes is to eat wide range of antioxidants. Following is the list of foods for diabetics that can be added in their diet plan for lowering down the blood sugar levels.

1- Cranberries

2- Blueberries

3- Red beans

4- Pomegranate

5- Artichokes

6- Black And green tea

Each diabetic meal must contain 2 to 3 servings of antioxidants.

Protectors

It is critically important that all diabetic understand the ways in which blood sugar level cause the damage. The naughtiest process is glycation. In this process sugar molecules react with proteins and form non function structures in the body. This is the prime cause of complications of diabetes. It makes the basis of heart attack, heart stroke and even blindness.

Protector foods include those foods that have the capability of minimizing the glycation effect:

1-Liver

2- Turkey

3- Chilli pepper

4- Chicken

5- Lean red meat

6- Lentils

7- Tuna

The best way to enhance diabetes favour diabetes is by adding chilli peppers as marinade for fish and chicken. This is also strongly advised that diabetics must only choose the leanest cuts of the meat.

It is not difficult to beat diabetes, if a person has got the right tools for it. Human body can heal itself with the proper diabetes diet. The diabetic person has to plan his diabetic meals with greatest care while incorporating metabolizers, promoters, reducers and protectors.

If you want to have a free diabetic meal plan specifically designed according to your personal requirement check Diabetic Diet Plan. This list will help to design a meal plan that has the ability to control the Signs Of Diabetes in a way that you'll end up saying where is my blood sugar?

Compression Socks Especially for Diabetic Care

As the name suggests, compression socks are especially manufactured socks aimed at offering a uniform level of compression on the legs of the wearer. The main purpose of wearing such socks is to control a condition commonly referred to as pooling of blood. In this condition, blood starts accumulating the legs of the individual affected and leads to a number of consequential issues such as ache, sores, edema, and in some cases even gangrene. By offering a uniform pressure on the legs of the wearer, compression socks are able to promote the flow of blood, enabling it to travel back to the heart. This way, by promoting the flow of blood, these socks are able to prevent pooling of blood in the individual's lower limbs.

With diabetes being one of the most commonly found ailment with pooling of blood as an associated issue, most diabetic care experts prescribe these socks to people dealing with diabetes. The reason for this condition to occur along with diabetes is the deterioration in the ability of the affected individual's body to process cholesterol. The unprocessed cholesterol in the blood starts to deposit on the walls of the nerves causing a restriction in the blood passages, thereby preventing it from reaching the heart causing the already mentioned issues in the lower limbs of those affected.

Since the motion of blood while returning from the legs to the heart is against the gravity while the legs being the farthest body part from the heart, the deteriorated veins are unable to offer sufficient channel for the oxidized blood to reach back to the heart, and hence, pooling of blood. By using diabetic socks, people dealing with this condition are able to find relief from this problem and are able to lead a much healthier and trouble free life without having to rely on harmful medicine and highly expensive medical therapies.

Due to their large demand compression hosiery is being made in a number of options such as support pantyhose, compression knee socks, and several other remarkable options to suit people with different needs. However, when buying any type of compression socks, it is extremely important to ensure the quality of the option you are going for. This is particularly important as people often get lured by ridiculously low priced imports and waste their money as poor quality compression hosiery slack after a very short while, making them utter wastage of your hard-earned money.

Type 2 Diabetes - Weight Gain From Your Diabetic Medication!

Often many Type 2 diabetics have to rely on external insulin to get them through their daily routines. But unfortunately, one of the side effects of taking insulin via injection is that it can cause weight gain. This is particularly bad news for those individuals who are already fighting a weight issue.

Why would a diabetic medication designed specifically for treating diabetes do that?

Insulin is the hormone the beta cells of the pancreas produces in order to regulate the blood sugar, or the absorption of sugar into the body's cells. In other words insulin is a blood sugar "bus"... it drops off glucose or sugar molecules throughout your body. But when insulin isn't being utilized properly then more has to be added from an external source, which means giving yourself injections. But the extra insulin causes your body to send more insulin to the cells, even though the cells can't handle that kind of volume.

Instead of the excess sugar being excreted in your urine, the blood sugar builds up in your bloodstream. When there is excess sugar in your body it gets stored away, some as triglycerides or cholesterol. After all, it is excess sugar, and what does the body do with any excess sugar that it has?

Another way to look at it is the injectable insulin corrects a problem your body previously had. Before you started taking injectable insulin your food was not being processed correctly, which was why you needed to go on insulin in the first place. Since your food wasn't processed correctly, it wasn't being utilized for the right reasons. External insulin corrected that malfunction.

Now when you eat, food is being processed as it was intended, thanks to the introduction of insulin. But the excess food means more calories. More calories... more fat. More fat... well, you get the picture!

This is why it is imperative to adjust your food intake when you are placed on insulin. It does correct one problem, but if adjustments aren't made then you have over-corrected the problem. It is possible to have both the correct insulin and the correct body weight, as long as you adjust your food and drug accordingly.

You have to take action to control your food choices, their portions and how they are processed. Start with consuming the right foods. No one likes counting calories (or kgs) or limiting their fat intake, but it has to be done.

Keeping a constant supply of the right fuel means the body is burning fuel more efficiently. More efficient burning means more controlled blood sugar levels. The other way to ensure proper fuel utilization is through an exercise program. Exercise works the heart and lungs, keeps muscles and joints in top condition and, oh yes, burns excess fat and helps to lower blood sugar.

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

Clicking on this link will help you to learn more about Type 2 Diabetes Solutions... Beverleigh Piepers RN... the Diabetes Detective.

Jun 28, The Diabetic Dieting Sitemap and SiteSearch

The Diabetic Dieting Sitemap and SiteSearch is the easiest place to access every page on this site.

Know what your looking for?

With what I call SiteSearch you can type in a keyword (like strawberries for example) into the SiteSearch box below and find all the pages on Diabetic-Dieting.com that has that keyword (in this case strawberries)! Easy.

Please note, this isn't an automated page. I.E it isn't automatically updated as soon as I create a new page. The diabetic dieting blog is the quickest way to find out about news and updates on the diabetic dieting site.

The Diabetic Dieting RSS feed is the best place to be for fast & fresh news and updates on the site - delivered to you - and it's easy to subscribe. Quick! Click here to subscribe to Fast & Fresh news and updates on Diabetic-Dieting.com delivered to you!

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Use the search box below to find anything on www.Diabetic-Dieting.com or keep reading for the Diabetes Sitemap.

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Discover the Diabetic Diet. Find diabetes research on eating healthy, essential nutrition for diabetics and more. The Diabetic Dieting Blog is a great place to discover the site.

Diabetic test strips to five things to know before you buy

Diabetic test strips have come a long way since diabetics used the urine tests, on home leave tests. And there are some things you really should know, before you who decide to buy glucose monitor. If you get it home, it is important, it correctly handles, so they give you accurate readings. Here is a list of five things that you choose and use your diabetic test strips.

Number-one - what will it cost

Looking for a good glucose monitor is only half of the research you need to do before on the counter to pay, your needs. Even if you find a free monitor, it is a one-time purchase, but who are diabetic test strips a monthly costs for, as long as you have the brand monitor.

Medicare and Medicaid will pay for your monitor and test strips, durable medical equipment be considered. It separates them from your recipe needs (such as insulin and needles). Make sure you fall and you can choose from the options available from your DME provider.

But if you buy the strip itself, it's good to know, where you the lowest price to get. Go to Amazon.com and compare their rates on diabetes test strips with, you'll find at a discount store. The Amazon prices are to store typically half as much as the cost of the same brands.

By the way, it is easy to check prices in shops that have a website. This type of knowledge arms you with the information, the choose you want the best diabetic test, as well as the best glucose monitor strips. In addition, you can decide where you get them. Remember to read the fine print when you buy online because prices often add much the price of shipping.

Check the expiration date number two-

Their meter readings if your test strips out of date are possible. Check always the data when you receive in the mail, or buy at the store. Expiration dates are printed clearly on each vial and CD. Send back, if they are old.

Make sure your old strips first hitting, if you, so you don't accidentally save some until they are up to date a new stack. It is often useful, but it is easy to ignore small details like this, if you are in a hurry or distracted.

If you have a type 2 diabetes, only tests that every day, and new just watch your expiration date in bulk,. Buy the Strip, which have removed the date most widely, so that you don't have to worry about.

Number three - forget you not, programming

A lot of diabetic meters must be coded for each new lot or vial. Many newer monitors must be encoded, so if you, who, as search for the words "no coding" If you buy a new blood glucose meter. Get less means a monitor that must not be encoded, to remember a thing.

If your monitor shows encoding, a number every time must be, put into a test strip. Make sure that the number of matches one on the bottle or package. Skip this step if you open a new vial of test strips, will make your blood sugar readings unreliable.

Number four - protect your diabetes test strips

Humidity, moisture and warmth are the Strip unusable. They come to you in sealed bottles or packs, and you can save it the same way. Let never open, in the air. Do not store well at room temperature, in the refrigerator. If they stay too cold or to a heat source near not being not more accurate.

Wash your hands before you touch them, and make sure that alcohol does not get on it either. Alcohol contaminate the test strip, and so will dust and dirt. Clean hands that do not wet are all that should ever touch of water or alcohol.

Number five - know how to use your diabetic test strips

Test strip discs must be inserted correctly in the monitor, or she will not work. Individual strips before they turn on the device be complete, and must be inserted. Curved strips are useless. And add the amount of blood that is needed. Too little and the test is not running. Get too much blood smeared on the Strip and it displays an error message.

If you problems when using your test strips, issues you the nurse at the Office of the physician, ways to show your difficulties. They deal with diabetics that are testing all the time, and they know what they are doing.

Type 2 diabetes work symptoms of as peripheral neuropathy with test strips more difficult because you have lost sensitivity in your fingertips. Keep away the vial and meter on a clean surface, so that if you delete the stripes do not take.

Talking about type 2 diabetes symptoms, if you use the test strips more than once per day, have you probably better control of your blood sugar and which leads to better results with all the complications of diabetes.

Continuous glucose monitors have not yet perfected. And the monitors, blood, to read the glucose numbers need a drop still unavailable to us. You need to use test strips. Good for them and good for your health.

Using Diabetic Supplies As a Preventative Measure Against Diabetes Complications

Complications from disease are never a fun event. In the case of diabetes, complications can be difficult to manage, irreversible and life threatening. It follows that the advice that all diabetic patients should learn about and take preventative measures against complications arising is so important and should be taken seriously.

An example of a serious complication is nerve damage which occurs when there is too much blood sugar in the blood stream. Neuropathy, a type of nerve damage, occurs when the covering of the nerves is damaged by high blood sugar levels. The nerves then are unable to send signals appropriately. High blood sugar levels occur when the pancreas of a diabetic patient is unable to produce enough insulin or properly utilize the insulin it produces. With the lack of sufficient glucose absorption in the blood stream, the excess sugar can also lead to other severe medical conditions such as glaucoma and cataracts.

Low blood glucose levels can also be problematic and should be treated immediately. If not promptly treated, some diabetic patients with low blood sugar can have seizures or go into comas and in some instances, death could occur. It is vital not to allow low or high blood sugar levels to persist. Low blood glucose warning signs include blurred vision, excessive sweat, experiencing confusion, nervousness, irritability, anger and sadness. Diabetic patients themselves may not readily connect these signs to diabetes. Ignoring low or high blood sugar warnings can be potentially dangerous indeed.

Although, there are a number of red flags symptoms such as unusual weight loss and blurred vision that could indicate the presence of high blood sugar in diabetic patients, these high blood sugar warning signs could go unnoticed. As in the case of low blood sugar, diabetic patients can easily attribute high blood sugar warning signs such as an upset stomach or headaches to less severe ailments and may not understand the urgency of the situation. Both low and high blood sugar should be treated immediately and the best way for diabetic patients to determine that they have low or high levels of glucose in their blood stream is to actually test their blood.

The use of diabetic testing supplies lets diabetic patients know when their blood glucose levels are low and, as in the case of high glucose levels, trigger the patient to find techniques for rectifying the situation without delay. Mail order diabetic supplies and diabetes supplies online suppliers are a convenient no-fuss way of ensuring adequate supply for the home and for office kits. Using diabetic supplies such as meters help patients understand triggers that generate abnormal blood glucose levels and learn more about the foods or medications that keep complications away. When patients use diabetes supplies to determine that they have low or high blood sugar, immediate treatment is required. The right type and quantity of supplies on hand and immediately accessible are vital for diabetic patients to have a way of keeping essential records to help manage the disease.

There is benefit in being able to test blood glucose levels immediately and in the comfort of a patient's home. There is no need to book a doctor's appointment and absolutely no need to develop severe complications that could result in comas or other life threatening conditions. Diabetic testing supplies such as accurate blood glucose meters, lancets and test strips meters kept conveniently to hand are among the most effective preventative measures against complications from diabetes.

9 Easy Ways to Prevent Diabetic Foot And Its Complications

Diabetic foot is a long term complication of diabetes mellitus. Foot infections are one of the most common problems in people with diabetes. Because of poor circulation in these individuals, wounds and infections are more difficult to treat. Another problem is peripheral vascular disease which can lead to gangrene. With chronic uncontrolled glucose levels, there can be resulting damage to the blood vessels and nerves in the feet. When this happens, there can be reduced feeling in the feet and even numbness. If the foot gets a blister or a small cut, this may go unnoticed and as a result, the feet may not heal well.

Below are nine ways to prevent diabetic foot and its complications.

First, control diabetes by monitoring blood sugar levels. Your doctor may ask for testing of A1C levels every three months. Generally, the result should be less than seven percent. Using a blood glucose monitor to self monitor your sugar levels can assist you in making proper adjustments to your medications. Discuss with your physician about what is an acceptable range. Be sure that you know what to do if your blood sugar is not within that range.

Next, examine your feet every day. Check for cuts, sores, blister, redness, calluses, corns, ingrown nails, skin cracks, or other problems. If you cannot reach your feet, use a mirror or ask someone to do it for you. Remember that no matter how small or minor the injury may appear, it can be potentially dangerous for diabetics because of the higher risk of infection. It is also necessary to check for changes in the shape of your toes and feet. The foot arch can drop or the toes may start to curl under. Charcot foot is a type of foot deformity due to neuropathy.

Third, keep your skin smooth and soft by using skin lotion on the bottom and over the tops of your feet. Do not apply lotion in between the toes as this may cause fungal growth. Dry and cracked feet can turn to ulcers that may not heal.

Because your nails protect the toes from trauma, it is important to keep the nails in good condition. The nails should be smooth and pinkish. If your nails appear thick and brittle, this can mean onychomycosis or nail infection. Get this treated without delay. When cutting the toenails, trim them straight across and smooth the edges using a nail file or emery board.

Fifth, if you notice any wart or growth, do not attempt to self treat. Never use a nail clipper, scissors, nail file, or chemicals to remove calluses, corns, or warts by yourself. See your foot doctor for proper management.

Sixth, it is important to protect your feet. Never walk barefoot and avoid anything that can hurt your feet. Avoid hot water, heating pads, and electric blankets that can burn or numb a skin area without you noticing it. Do not wear socks that are too tight.

Seventh, wear comfortable shoes that fit well and cushion your feet. If you have new shoes, do not wear them for more than a couple of hours at a time to break them. This would avoid the possibility of developing sore spots that could turn worse later on. Check inside your shoes before wearing them to see if there are little stones or objects inside that can cause injury. Make sure the lining is smooth and that there are no tears that can irritate your feet.

Eighth, see your doctor regularly. Consult immediately if you notice any changes in your feet or if you have increasing pain of numbness in the feet. Your podiatrist will examine your feet, check for blood circulation, and test for nerve damage.

And lastly, keep your home and workplace safe. Remove any clutter and keep the floor free from litter to avoid accidents.

By simply taking these basic practices, you can prevent diabetic foot and its complications. See a podiatrist for proper management of the feet. The best place to get the best treatment is at a specialized wound care center.

Lorinne Yen specializes in medical and health care articles.

Are Diabetic Drugs Causing Cancer? New Research

Could your medication be causing cancer? Unfortunately, it's true. In this study there was only a single medication for diabetes that didn't increase cancer risk.

First of all, let me point out just how incredibly dangerous the diabetic AND prediabetic states are for human physiology. There is arguable nothing more damaging to our health, even cigarette smoking. Yes--more dangerous than smoking. Of course, a smoker who is prediabetic or diabetic will have a very high risk of most chronic diseases.

The diabetic state is one that we constantly fight against. In reality, it is our protection against starvation and hardship. Sound strange? It is, looking at today's society, where calories are in abundance and there is no metabolic cost to get them (compare walking to the fridge vs hunting a boar for days...). With the exception of the past 100 years or so, starvation was the norm. Our bodies are extremely well developed at surviving adversity, so we do well with this scenario.

This also smashes the "bad genes" concept. Those most prone to diabetes actually have the toughest genes--genes designed to store calories for a rainy day. But that rainy day never comes in today's society because lots and lots of poor quality calories are found everywhere.

So back to this particular article. Based on increasingly strong links between diabetes and many types of cancer, the researchers looked at how much diabetic medications may be contributing.

Certainly, diabetes itself and the elevated insulin that accompanies it will increase the risk of cancer. Insulin is a proliferative hormone and causes cells to divide more. More cell division increases the risk of an error. An error may lead to cancer. You get the picture.

Diabetic medications, with the exception of metformin, doubled the risk of being diagnosed with cancer. If one of these diabetics that got cancer was on insulin, their risk of dying was 400% greater.

For anyone that thinks that diabetic drugs are lifesavers needs to read this article. The ONLY thing that is a lifesaver is to make the appropriate anti-diabetic lifestyle changes such as..

Merely chewing more times before swallowing has consistently shown to improve the way our bodies respond to the food we it, steering our physiology away from diabetes and towards health.

Eat more nuts. Make sure there are NO added oils--just raw nuts or roasted and salted with no added oils like cottonseed or peanut oil. These will undo the benefits of the nuts.

Avoid artificial sweeteners like the plague. Despite the common use and recommendation of artificial sweeteners like aspartame and sucralose, study after study confirms that these compounds actually promote diabetes, likely by disconnecting our taste from our response to calories.

Try supplements. Many supplements have been shown to help diabetes such as magnesium, fish oils and folic acid. These can be powerful aids to your dietary changes.

Calorie restriction. Cutting back on our calories while increasing the quality of those calories (i.e. your 1200 calories per day comes from broccoli and not from a value meal) is the single most powerful change that can impact diabetes. Study have shown that diabetics on insulin can be off their insulin in one week with controlled calorie restriction.

The list is actually quite endless and each change compliments the other. But it is not a single change, but rather changes in diet, chemical exposure, stress levels and exercise that all come together as a powerful tool to steer us away from diabetes.

However, for those of you thinking that maybe metformin doesn't look to bad after reading this study needs to look at the cost comparison between lifestyle changes ($1100) and metformin ($31,300). Again, lifestyle wins hands down. For more than a decade, Dr. Bogash has stayed current with the medical literature as it relates to physiology, disease prevention and disease management. He uses his knowledge to educate patients, the community and cyberspace on the best way to avoid and / or manage chronic diseases using lifestyle and targeted supplementation. His areas of greatest expertise include the diabetic progression as neurodegenerative conditions such as migraines, seizures, epilepsy, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.

Type 2 Diabetes - Risk Factors Which Could Lead To Diabetic Coma!

Diabetic coma is a potentially life-threatening condition characterized by loss of consciousness. An increased blood sugar level, or hyperglycemia, or a decreased blood sugar level, or hypoglycemia, are the main causes of diabetic coma. If left untreated diabetic coma may lead to permanent brain damage and even death.

The causes of diabetic coma may vary and it mainly depends on the type of diabetes you have. Type 1 diabetics usually develop diabetic coma because of:

severely decreased blood sugar levels, or hypoglycemia, anddiabetic ketoacidosis, the condition characterized by the excessively increased ketone levels within the body resulting from the incomplete metabolism of fats.

On the other hand, Type 2 diabetics, particularly those belonging to the middle-aged population, may develop diabetic coma because of:

diabetic hyperosmolar syndrome, a condition characterized by the excessively increased blood sugar levels that are higher than 600 mg/dL or 33.3 mmol/L.

What are the risk factors associated with the development of diabetic coma?

1. Insulin level problems: An increase in your blood insulin levels due to excessive insulin dosing may result in hypoglycemia. On the other hand, insufficient levels of insulin results in hyperglycemia. Hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia are both causes of diabetic coma.

2. Illness, surgery or trauma: Injury, illness and other forms of stress may increase your blood sugar level dramatically. If you have Type 1 diabetes and you are undergoing some form of stress, you should ask your doctor to adjust the dosage of your insulin injection because physical stress may abruptly increase the level of your blood glucose leading to diabetic ketoacidosis. If you have Type 2 diabetes, the resultant increase of your blood sugar may lead to the development of diabetic hyperosmolar syndrome. Other forms of stressors that may cause hyperglycemia include congestive heart failure and renal diseases.

3. Poor blood sugar control: Poor management of Type 2 diabetes results in increased blood sugar levels. If you are not taking time to monitor your blood sugar level regularly or you are not taking your anti-diabetic medications as prescribed by your doctor, you are at risk of developing hyperglycemia and, therefore, diabetic coma.

4. Skipping your insulin injection or injections: Insulin injections are prescribed by your doctor for a very good reason... and that is to have tighter control of your blood glucose. If you try skipping your insulin injection, you have a chance of developing overwhelmingly increased blood sugar levels, which in turn may cause diabetic coma.

5. Drinking alcohol: Drinking alcohol may be dangerous if you are a diabetic. You see, alcohol can unpredictably affect your blood glucose even up to two days after your drinking spree. Alcohol... which is basically the only non-FDA approved drinkable drug sold over-the-counter... is a big no-no with insulin, and all diabetes drugs for that matter.

6. Use of prohibited drugs. Illegal drug use can increase your risk of developing severe forms of hyperglycemia, hence diabetic coma. The most commonly used illegal drugs which lead to hyperglycemia include cocaine and ecstasy. Marijuana is not classed as an upper, but it also appears to increase blood sugar levels. The effect of the various illegal drugs are variable due to the fact they are manufactured illicitly... the potency of these drugs varies widely. If illicit drugs are taken, always check your blood sugar level.