13Jun

Does Having Type 2 Diabetes Affect Your Sleep?

FILED IN Type 2 Diabetes No Comments

Do you have Type 2 diabetes and find yourself not sleeping well at night? When was the last time you slept like a baby for more than six hours straight?

Sleeping problems are one of the most often neglected problems in Type 2 diabetes. However, as stated in an article published by Medscape Education Internal Medicine, sleep disturbances are one of the most common symptoms seen in people with this form of diabetes. In fact, as mentioned in a study conducted in the St. Boniface General Hospital, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and published by Sleep Medicine in September 2001, adults with Type 2 diabetes had a higher chance of developing insomnia, morning sleepiness and drowsiness, compared to adults with a normal blood sugar level.

What are the reasons for sleep issues and disturbances in Type 2 diabetics?

1. Peripheral neuropathy: Peripheral neuropathy is the most common form of diabetes-related nerve damage. Your peripheral nerves allow you to feel something as rough or smooth, cold or hot, sharp or dull. If you have peripheral neuropathy, those feelings are diminished. Damage to the nerve endings in both your upper and lower extremities, is a common disorder in people with Type 2 diabetes according to the study published by Sleep Disorder. Who could possibly sleep in the face of nagging pain and discomfort in their legs? Peripheral neuropathy can be so disturbing it can really affect your sleep.

2. Having Type 2 diabetes can increase your chances of developing sleep apnea: According to a study conducted in the MedStar Research Institute, Hyattsville, Maryland, the results of which were published in the 2003 issue of Diabetes Care, obesity-related Type 2 diabetes is a large risk factor in the development of sleep apnea. If you wake up feeling tired, snore and are overweight, you could have undiagnosed sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is seen as abnormal breathing pauses and abnormal low breathing during sleep. As analyzed by the researchers of this particular study, this type of sleeping disorder in the case of Type 2 diabetes may be a centrally located problem, meaning inside the brain, instead of an obstructive symptom caused by obesity. However, further investigation is warranted to establish this fact.

3. Unstable blood sugar levels can cause sleep disturbances: A study conducted in the Rambam Medical Center and Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel and published in the Journal of Pediatrics in 2003 states unstable blood sugar levels can play a role in sleep pattern disturbance in diabetics. Also, a rapid increase in blood sugar levels usually results in waking up from a restful sleep. However, further research and clinical studies are necessary to further prove this finding.

10Jun

Diabetes Management Is So Important

FILED IN Other No Comments

Unfortunately at the present time, there is not a cure for type 1 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes can be reversed to a certain degree with a good diet and exercise. I know that this is not what most diabetics want to hear. However the fact is that even though there is no cure, there certainly are ways to manage your diabetes and keep yourself in good health.

Good diabetes management can give you many years of healthy living. I was reading the other day of a man of 90 years old who had had Type 1 diabetes since the age of 5 and was in excellent health( other than having diabetes). And this was because he had learned how to manage his illness.

Once you are diagnosed with diabetes, you need to learn as much as possible about the appropriate diet, exercise and medication that you will need to keep your diabetes in check. Your doctor and diabetes health team will help you with this task.

Controlling the glucose ( blood sugar) cycle is the main aim of a diabetic. The glucose cycle is affected by two things, entry of glucose into the bloodstream and blood levels of insulin to control the transport out. This is done with medication, and in the case of Type 1 diabetics with insulin injections. (some Type 2’s also administer insulin if they do not respond to oral medications such as metaformin.

Best mexican pharmacy online

Your glucose levels will react sensitively to diet and exercise, and you will be guided by your health team on how to keep your blood sugar within a certain range. Proper management of diabetes is not always easy and just when you think you have the whole thing sorted, your blood sugar levels spike again.

Management of diabetes requires a complete lifestyle change and frequent, sometimes multi-daily, checks of glucose in the blood. This is quite a shock when you are first diagnosed because it seems to take over your life. However you do get used to it – there is no other choice! It does help if you get a chance to meet up with other fellow diabetics for a chat. We all have different tips and ideas that work for us. But never try something new without telling your doctor.

Today it is easy to measure blood sugar levels. Glucose meters are readily available and are quite easy to use with a little practice and patience. Just a little prick on the side of your finger, a small drop of blood on to the testing strip attached to the glucose meter and the meter will show your blood sugar level. This in turn will let you know if and when insulin is needed.

Once you have the result, you administer the appropriate dose of insulin to bring your blood sugar back into the safety range which should be between 4mmol/l- 7mmol/l before meals and 9 mmol/l two hours after a meal.

It can seem like a constant battle to keep your diabetes in check and there have been times when I have felt like chucking all the testing paraphernalia out of the window. But there is no positive alternative.

By managing diabetes we can avoid all the complications we have been warned about, such as heart attack, stroke, blindness etc.etc. Yes, management is good because, despite the diabetes, it can lead to a healthy happy lifestyle.

09Jun

Elevated Blood Sugar Causes Progressive Problems

FILED IN Insulin Levels No Comments

Typically, a physical at your doctor’s office will include a fasting blood test. If your results come back in the 110-120 range, you are generally told that it is a little high, but not too much of a concern – you do not have pre-diabetes or diabetes yet.

Unfortunately for you, damage is already occurring in your system at levels well below what is being recognized as a pre-disease or disease state such as diabetes. The following is to help you see what is actually occurring, and why you need to take a more thorough look at your blood sugar level. Keep in mind that all of the following are occurring while you are perhaps being told your glucose levels are not a problem.

Clinical studies and autopsies show damage occurs much earlier than anyone thought – at 100 mg/dl. Elevated blood sugar levels cause a unique set of problems that affect the entire body. To understand the complications of this, and how soon problems begin occurring, we need to review a general understanding of the hormone insulin.

Understanding Insulin & Glucagon’s Role in the Body

The goal for your body is to keep blood sugar levels in a narrow range regardless of what you eat…..processed foods, donuts, fruits, etc. For most people this is normally between 70 and 110. The doctor’s lab range usually shows it as 65 to 99. That is not really a lot of sugar in your bloodstream. For a person that weighs about 150 pounds, we are talking about less than 1/6th of an ounce. Fasting blood sugar should be about 80 to 85. (A Glucose Tolerance test is a better indicator and should not exceed 120 at two hours; however, medical offices rarely perform this test due to time and costs.)

Thanks to the pancreas, you body is equipped with a very effective system for maintaining this narrow range. When you eat a meal high in sugar (this can be carbohydrates not just sugar) and blood sugar levels rise, the pancreas (specifically the Beta Cells in the area of pancreas called the Islets of Langerhans) quickly release the hormone insulin. (Your body knows it has to keep blood sugar in balance so this occurs with extraordinary speed). The bloodstream quickly carries the insulin to all the cells in the body where the insulin triggers receptor sites on the cell walls, thus allowing the sugar to pass into the cell to be converted to energy.

If you eat more sugar then is needed for energy, it is stored as glycogen mostly in the liver but some is also stored in the muscles.

Once blood sugar levels are in normal range, the Beta Cells stop the production of insulin as the levels have been stabilized.

If your blood sugar starts to drop, the Alpha Cells from your pancreas release the other pancreatic hormone, glucagon, which triggers the release of the stored sugar (glycogen) from your liver and muscles, thus raising the blood sugar. The term “carb-loading” used by long distance runners and tri-athletes, refers their tying to fill their liver and muscles with this stored sugar, glycogen, for energy.

So far, everything is working fine in the body; however, at some point for various reasons (some of which are listed below), the insulin does not so easily pass through the cell walls causing the Beta Cells to have to increase the production of insulin, bombarding the cells to try to get the sugar into them for energy and balancing the blood sugar levels.

Following are the top reasons for cell walls and receptor cells not allowing insulin to cause the passage of sugar into the cells – with the first two being the most common:

Too much sugar and carbs in the diet for a prolonged period of time requiring too much insulin release which can damage the receptor cells. (Diabetes was not much of an issue until processed and refined foods entered the national diet.)
Too much transfat and saturated fat which can coat the cells, interfering with the insulin effectiveness. (Transfats have now been outlawed in restaurants in some states, but they are still in many foods). Again, Diabetes was not much of an issue until transfats, specifically margarine, were introduced into the national diet.
Lack of the 46 essential nutrients that cells much have to properly function as designed. These nutrients must come from the food you eat or the supplements you take. Deficits in any of the 46 essentials can cause a disease state in the body. (The SONA vitamin line by Enerex USA is the best on the market).
Genes that help regulate insulin may be damaged from toxins, metals, heredity, or other factors.
Prolonged periods of stress – stress shuts down insulin, which causes blood levels to spike to make energy more available in times of need. The insulin production then spikes to bring the elevated sugar levels back down to normal.

As a result of this cell receptor issue, the cells in the body start to become resistant to the insulin being produced. Insulin levels must then be continually increased to force the sugar into the cells. This is the beginning of some other problems.

If fat cells develop insulin resistance, they release triglycerides into the blood stream. And what are triglycerides made of…glucose (sugar), fatty acids, and water. So the free fatty acid levels rise in your bloodstream which is one of the warning signals of the Metabolic Syndrome (Increased risk for heart disease). Did you ever consider that the fatty acid problem in your bloodstream could be related to too much blood sugar?
The increased insulin resistance in the liver and muscle cells means that they no longer store as much glucose, which again means that more sugar is in the bloodstream.
Slightly elevated blood sugar levels (over 100) is the point where some of the Beta Cells begin to be damaged. Blood sugar over 110 causes damage to your retina.
As your blood sugar continues to rise your pancreas goes into overdrive to produce more insulin in an attempt to bring your blood sugar back into balance and the more it stays at an elevated level the more Beta Cells get damaged (burnt out). By the time you are called a diabetic you may have lost 40% of your Beta Cells. You must deal with blood sugar issues while they are still reversible.

So now the body is in a position of having higher than normal blood sugar, plus higher then normal insulin levels. Both of these cause the problems listed below – and yet you are still not classified as having Diabetes since these conditions are occurring with blood sugar levels under 140, before you even have Pre-diabetes.

Elevated insulin is tied to the following:

Impaired fat burning, causing weight gain and the accumulation and storage of fat;
Damage to the kidneys;
Damage to the arterials walls causing atherosclerosis;
Increase in cholesterol and triglyceride levels;
High Blood pressure and heart disease;
Depletion of essential nutrients, causing vitamin and mineral deficiencies.

Elevated insulin will last in the body as long as the sugar remains too high and as long as you have enough functioning Beta Cells to produce the insulin. The production will slow over time as the Beta Cells are damaged or become dormant.

Elevated blood sugar results in a cascading effect within the body. Since your body knows that elevated blood sugar causes severe damage to organs, it tries to minimize the damage by taking defensive action. As sugar rises the small blood vessels start to narrow, reducing the flow of sugar getting to the organs. The higher the blood sugar, the more the blood vessels narrow. Unfortunately this impairs circulation, and reduces the amount of nutrients and oxygen that get to the organs and nerves of the body, as well as their ability to carry away cellular waste. This begins to damage cells in the small nerves of the hands and feet (why you might have tingling, pain, or cold hands and feet). The kidneys and other organs begin to show some damage as well. As much as 40% of your Beta Cells can be destroyed in as little as two years with elevated blood sugar before you are deemed a Diabetic.

With less blood flow, wounds do not heal as well and infections may become an issue. The sugar also sticks to the proteins that are needed for construction of quality collagen, essential for the repair and building of cells.

Now there is a cycle occurring where the body is having a very difficult time balancing blood sugar. Damage is occurring to not only the pancreas, which is responsible for balancing the blood sugar, but also to major organs and your nervous system. Unless you mange your blood sugar, the cycle will continue with more damage and more Beta Cells destroyed – until you finally reach the 200 mg/dl blood sugar level and are then labeled a diabetic. Of course, the fact that you insurance rates and medical costs will skyrocket, or worse, you may not even qualify for insurance, may be the least of your worries.

Those who finally develop full blown Diabetes have severe complications and will experience a shorter life span that may include severe pain. You can also expect to dramatically increase your risk of one or more of the following:

amputation
blindness
kidney failure and possible need for a dialysis machine
heart disease and hardening of the arteries
premature death

This disease is already epidemic: 40% of people over 20 years old have some degree of blood sugar problems or glucose intolerance; 75% of the elderly have the problem; one in every three of our school children is expected to develop full diabetes, and based on current ratios, that means nearly all of them will develop glucose intolerance.

Do you really want to experience a life of pain and diminished capabilities? Yes, the medical world can keep you alive with drugs – but what kind of life is that?

Be smart. Start taking care of yourself now with exercise and better diet to help metabolize the blood sugar. Take Diabetes Defense to help you with blood sugar and fat metabolism.

Don’t wait. Start a new program for better health today.

Mark Schumacher is a 57 year old health advocate that owns a health supplement company. He is a former premed student and EMT that now invests his time in teaching and training young athletes. He also consults with clients on health and weight issues and believes that education along with a healthy diet and the right supplements is the solution to the nations health problem.

08Jun

Kidney Disease and Diabetes – How Are They Related?

FILED IN Other No Comments

Generally, not anyone who has diabetes contracts kidney disease. This is just another common misconception relating to the illness. While it is true that uncontrolled hyperglycemia can cause kidney disease, diabetics who maintain their appropriate blood glucose levels can avoid developing kidney failure.

Primarily, diabetes can progress to kidney disease when the renal organs are unable to dispose of the byproducts of sugars and starches. These foods stay in the system and do not break up and get eliminated, as they definitely do in others without the disease. These wastes dwell in the body and abnormally cause the blood sugar levels to rise to unsafe, high levels. It makes disposal of proteins difficult as well.

Efficiency of the kidney function is highly altered when there is uncontrolled diabetes. Due to that, the kidneys must work harder beyond its usual process to eliminate body wastes, and clean out sugars and starches at the same time. As the kidneys strain excessive amounts of blood, protein and other waste products begin to leak into the whole body system. Eventually, waste products start to build up in the blood.

A progression of kidney disease is common among diabetics. The kidneys become overworked and they shut down inevitably. When this happens, the person is automatically put on dialysis where a machine functions as an artificial kidney. At most times, an individual with kidney disease could opt for a transplant, however, this is hardly an option to patients that have diabetes.

Without their kidneys, people definitely cannot sustain their lives. For that reason, it is certainly vital that an individual with diabetes recognizes how their kidneys function and what ways can they do to assist these organs to work proficiently. A diabetic doesn’t have to contract kidney disease, as well as the majority of complications following the disease. A simple implementation of the doctor’s prescription and advocating a healthy lifestyle is more than enough.

The only drawback is that many diabetics are non-compliant individuals, those who refuse to do what their doctors instruct them. They do not follow the diet plans strongly suggested in the Glycemic Index, a record developed to educate those with diabetes of what meals to have and avoid. Meals that are high in the glycemic index take the longest to digest and do the most harm to the kidneys.

Furthermore, tracking their blood sugar levels is another problem. A diabetic is normally prescribed a blood monitor that he has to use several times a day to check their glucose levels. These levels are noted and presented to their physician on their next visit. However, many diabetics don not conform to this essential part of their care.

In addition, medications such as insulin shots and oral hypoglycemic drugs are commonly prescribed but are occasionally overlooked and avoided. These drugs aid the kidneys in eliminating waste by metabolizing foods. There are several programs present for those who cannot afford these drugs, so there is no basis to not take these medications.

Lastly, exercise and weight control are very important to keeping a healthy body. Not only for diabetics, but also for the general population. Diseases are easily fought back when the body is functioning well. Yet, most people simply refuse to adhere to these essential measure.

In conclusion, kidney disease and diabetes are two different illnesses. Diabetes is not invariably a marker to kidney disease. One does not always lead to the other. Discipline is the key to achieving a desirable life. If a person is only apt to take care of his body, nothing grave is going to happen.

TOP