Data strongly suggest that high serum uric acid is an independent predictor for the development of Type 2 diabetes, according to the results of a meta-analysis published in the journal Diabetes Care.

Identifying risk factors for the development of Type 2 diabetes is essential for early screening and prevention and previous studies have suggested that serum uric acid may be a risk factor for the disease.

To characterize this association further, Hirohito Sone and colleagues, from the University of Tsukuba Institute of Clinical Medicine in Ibaraki, Japan, conducted a systematic literature search from 1966 to 2009 to identify relevant observational cohort studies.

The studies were required to include Type 2 diabetes as a specified outcome, report baseline assessment of serum uric acid, and include data on relative risk.

The authors stratified the studies into subgroups based on different study characteristics, and performed meta-regression analyses to investigate the effect of these characteristics on the association between serum uric acid levels and risk for Type 2 diabetes.

Eleven cohort studies (42,834 participants) met the inclusion criteria reporting 3305 incident cases of Type 2 diabetes during follow-up periods ranging from 2.0 to 13.5 years.

To quantify the dose??”response relationship between baseline serum uric acid level and risk for Type 2 diabetes, the authors calculated the relative risk associated with each 1 mg/dl increase.

They found that each 1 mg/dl rise in serum uric acid resulted in a 17% increase in the risk for Type 2 diabetes. After adjustment for publication bias, the risk decreased to 11% but remained statistically significant.

Sensitivity analyses to explore the effects of study characteristics indicated that adjusting for alcohol intake weakened the association between serum uric acid and Type 2 diabetes risk, whereas adjusting for metabolic variables had no significant effect.

“These findings suggest that there are both noncausal and causal associations between serum uric acid level and the risk of Type 2 diabetes,” write the authors.

“Further research should attempt to investigate whether serum uric acid would be useful for predicting Type 2 diabetes with respect to the prevention of Type 2 diabetes,” they conclude.

MedWire (www.medwire-news.md) is an independent clinical news service provided by Current Medicine Group, a part of Springer Science+Business Media. © Current Medicine Group Ltd; 2009

Free abstract

Consuming white or oily fish at least once per week may reduce the risk for Type 2 diabetes, whereas high consumption of shellfish may increase this risk, report researchers in the journal Diabetes Care.

Nita Forouhi and colleagues (University of Cambridge, UK) completed a prospective analysis of the European Prospective Investigation of Cancer-Norfolk (EPIC-Norfolk) study to assess whether consumption of different types of fish and seafood is associated with future risk for developing Type 2 diabetes.

In total, 21,984 participants aged 40-79 years at baseline completed a food frequency questionnaire, which asked about fish and seafood intake (white fish, oily fish, fried fish, and shellfish) and categorized consumption as at least one serving per week versus less than one serving per week.

The participants were followed for an average of 10 years for the development of any health conditions, during which time 725 individuals developed Type 2 diabetes.

Having a higher total fish intake was associated with a 25% lower risk for developing Type 2 diabetes after adjusting for known risk factors and potential confounders including age, gender, family history of diabetes, education, smoking, physical activity, other dietary factors, and obesity.

Researchers reported a similar inverse association with diabetes risk and white fish and oily fish intakes; however, the associations were not significant after adjustment for obesity or dietary factors. Fried fish was not significantly associated with diabetes risk.

Interestingly, the researchers found that eating shellfish at least once per week was associated with a 36% increased risk for Type 2 diabetes, which they suggest may be related to cooking methods and condiments as shellfish tend to be fried and accompanied by mayonnaise or garlic butter.

“Our novel findings are potentially important as they suggest that the type of fish consumed may differentially influence the risk of diabetes,” write the authors.

“Total intake of both white and oily fish was associated with a lower risk for diabetes, reinforcing the public health message to consume fish regularly,” they conclude.

MedWire (www.medwire-news.md) is an independent clinical news service provided by Current Medicine Group, a trading division of Springer Healthcare Limited. © Springer Healthcare Ltd; 2009

Free abstract

Diabetes is a metabolic disorder that is affecting millions of people worldwide. It is a disorder in which human body does not produce or properly uses insulin, a hormone that is produced by the pancreas and is required to convert sugar, starches, and other food into energy. Without this insulin, the sugar remains in our bloodstream, creating several health related problems like blindness, kidney failure, nerve damage, stroke, amputations and other organ function problems. Finally, left untreated, it can lead to death.Majorly, there are three types of diabetes:

i) Type I, normally develops in children or young adults who are under the age of 30.In this form of diabetes the body destroys insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. Once these cells are destroyed, they won’t ever create insulin again.

ii) Type II, it is a condition that occurs when the pancreas fails to produce enough insulin.

iii) Gestational Diabetes, this type of diabetes is found in pregnant women who have never had diabetes before but who have high blood sugar levels during pregnancy.

There are several natural ways to avoid this disorder. Some of them are given below:

• Weight reduction is a key of success in managing diabetes; hence take all the measures of carbohydrate control, what you can.
• Exercise regularly for at least 3-4 hours per week or a simple half an hour walk is sufficient. Exercising regularly significantly reduces your diabetes risk, independent of weight
• Take a well balanced diet full of nutritional supplements.
• Stay away from food and beverages that contain added sugars.
• Avoid alcohol.
• Stop eating carbohydrates in massive amounts.
• Stop eating foods crammed full of sugar and stop drinking the sugar.
• Take supplements that contain magnesium, zinc, calcium, iron and vitamins A, C and D.
• Avoid dehydration.
• Do yoga and meditation to avoid stress and to keep you relaxed. Feeling stressed for long periods can make your blood sugar levels raise.
• Reduce your cholesterol level by including high fiber foods, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans in your diet.
• Avoid flour and baked products, like cookies, cakes, etc.
• Spread your meal at regular intervals.
• Drink at least 8 to 10 glasses of water everyday.
• Sleep well. Lack of sleep increase insulin resistance.
• Another good tip is to listen to music instead of watching TV, as while eating you are not aware of how much you are eating and will almost always overeat.

There are many myths surrounding foods and type two diabetes. One of the biggest myths is that a certain food causes this illness. Diabetes is now a global disease that leaves millions dead every year. This illness destroys the inner cellular DNA of the pancreas. It result can be the loss of limbs, impotence and even death. High blood sugar can literally choke the life out of your cells. With this problem so huge it is important to reveal some misinformation about the illness.

Myth # 1 The biggest myth surrounding diabetes is that involving sugar. Sugar does not cause diabetes. Unfortunately because an excessive of sugar in the blood can be a sign of diabetes it is assumed that sugar causes diabetes. An elevated blood sugar can be damaging to the circulation and the blood vessels. This is why many diabetics lose their fingers or toes. This is also responsible for the tingling in the fingers and toes. Studies show that sugar does not cause the elevated blood sugar A study published in Diabetes Care (April 2003) re-confirmed that sugar does not cause diabetes. In this study, researchers analyzed data on nearly 39,000 middle-aged women. It was found that the amount of sugar ingested after 6 years had no impact on who would get diabetes. This was one of the largest studies ever that did not find a sugar foods diabetes link.

Myth # 2 Alcohol A recent study from an Ivy league university showed alcohol did not cause type two diabetes. In the study it was found that alcohol actually lower diabetes risk. Moderate drinkers are less likely to have type two diabetes than are abstainers, according to the findings of 15 different studies that followed a total of 369,862 men and women for an average of 12 years. Light to moderate drinkers of alcohol beverages have a 30% to 40% lower diabetic risk than those who do not drink. Consuming alcohol directly improves the action of insulin in patients with type two diabetes according to a major research study. It was thought that alcohol would increase the risk of diabetes but this was wrong. It is becoming clear that alcohol does not cause diabetes.

Myth# 3 A vegetarian diet is better for diabetes than one including meat. Many type two diabetes diet foods omit meat. This is based on the assumption that meat is bad for a diabetic. A Duke University study recently showed that meat does not raise diabetes risk. Meat is a good source of protein, readily available iron, calcium, magnesium, selenium, zinc and a range of B vitamins. Since the evidence for any role in colon carcinogenesis is so weak, and since such a high proportion of women of child-bearing age are iron deficient, the consumption of meat, as part of a balanced and varied diet, should be actively encouraged was the conclusion.

Diabetes is one of the most deadly diseases in modern times. It is important to get the right information on type two diabetes foods. Often the misinformation about diabetes leaves the diabetic in a worst condition than before the diet.

Studies show twenty five percent of thin people are pre-diabetic and don’t know it! And there are twice as many people with pre-diabetes as there are with type 2 diabetes. What does this tell you?

Whether you are thin or overweight, if you have been diagnosed you have the opportunity to take steps to at least delay, or prevent the full diabetic condition developing. You will need to work harder to regain your health if you wait too long.

One of the earliest signs is tiredness which occurs after you have eaten a large amount of sugary food or carbohydrates. This is your body letting you know you cannot handle these very well. The truth is, if you continue to eat these foods your intolerance will continue to get worse.

At the moment your blood sugar levels would be in the range between normal and diabetes.

There is very good evidence that moderate lifestyle changes in someone early in the disease process, can delay the progression.

What can you do?

Step 1: Reduce your body weight. You don’t need to lose a lot, 5 to 10 per cent of your body weight when you where diagnosed will do the trick.

Step 2: Follow a diet low in saturated (animal) fats. This will help your insulin to regulate your blood sugar levels.

Step 3: Increase the amount of low-GI carbohydrates in your diet. Studies show people who have low-GI foods are less likely to develop type 2 diabetes. Many foods listed as low-GI contain a lot of fiber and that helps to reduce your blood-sugar.

Step 4: Adding soluble fiber to your diet has a lowering effect on blood-sugar and fat levels, particularly cholesterol.

Step 5: Increase your omega-3 intake as this improves insulin sensitivity and in turn your diabetes risk. You can do this by including fish and seafood at least twice a week.

Step 6: Include regular physical activity in your lifestyle plan. Walking, cycling, swimming and dancing are all beneficial to people with pre-diabetes.

Step 7: Every bit counts. Small lifestyle changes reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.