When someone has an ongoing illness vacation travel plans or travel for any reason have to be approached with much forethought. Traveling with diabetes is no exception. Strategic planning must be done before leaving for the trip, as well as during the trip. It is strongly recommended that you discuss your travel plans with your health care team so that they can make recommendations that will insure you are protected while away from home. These might include locating or recommending, when possible, a medical team or facility in the area to which you are traveling as well as specific things to do and extra supplies to take with you when you travel.

Diabetes is affected by many external as well as internal factors and it is amazing the effect these can have on blood sugar levels. Let’s examine some of these factors.

1) Changes in activity: It is generally understood that being physically active is beneficial for lowering your blood sugar or glucose levels. It also improves the ability of your body to absorb and use insulin. On the other hand, some types of activities can have a negative effect on your glucose levels. For example, if you decide to go on a hiking trip over hilly countryside while carrying heavy bags, you might want to discuss this with your doctor first. Lifting heavy weights and taking long walks over rough terrain could increase the pressure in the blood vessels in your eyes and make diabetic complications to your eyes worse. You could also develop blisters to your feet, and if these are not treated promptly they can result in complications. Unfortunately what started out as minor foot concerns for many diabetics have led to amputations.

2) Immunization shots: Usually these shots have very little adverse effects on a non-diabetic patient. However, like any other medicines or food that can have an effect, they can disturb your blood sugar levels. You doctor or health team may recommend that you schedule immunization shots a few weeks, as much as four weeks, before you’re ready to travel. The goal is to start your trip with your glucose levels as normal as possible.

3) Changes in Time Zones: For patients who are on medication, this is an area that has to be calculated carefully and is best documented for proper self-management since you could leave one area at 1:00 p.m. and arrive in another part of the world at 7:00 a.m. In additional, proper rest must be a part of diabetes management.

In large numbers patients are finding that they have been able to reduce the effects of diabetes and control the disease. However, if your diabetes is at a level that you are insulin dependent, traveling can still be fun but strategic planning must be implemented so that if medical attention is needed, you can receive it promptly.

Diabetic patients with more severe periodontal disease are at increased risk for neuropathic foot ulceration, say researchers.

“Diabetic neuropathy (DN) has been associated with oral dryness, tooth loss and an increased risk for foot ulceration, but the association between periodontal problems and DN has not been fully elucidated,” explain Helena Schmid (Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre, Brazil) and team.

Writing in the journal Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice, the authors report that of 122 patients with Type 2 diabetes, none/mild and moderate/severe periodontal disease was observed in 40.2% and 32.0% individuals, respectively, and a further 27.8% of the group were edentulous.

The patients had a mean age of 60.5 years, duration of diabetes of 14.5 years, and glycated hemoglobin of 9.3%.

Degree of severity of periodontal disease correlated significantly with presence of neuropathic foot ulceration. Overall, 18.4%, 68.2%, and 61.8% of the participants who had none/mild or moderate/severe periodontal disease, or who were completely edentulous, respectively, had neuropathic foot ulceration.

Following adjustment for gender, age, diabetes duration, dental healthcare, and education, the researchers found that moderate/severe periodontal disease and edentulism increased the risk for neuropathic foot ulceration 6.6 and 4.9 fold, respectively, compared with none/mild periodontal disease.

Schmid and colleagues caution that “it is still unclear whether severe neuropathy or other simultaneous complications increase the chances of periodontal disease.”

They suggest: “Future prospective studies should be conducted to evaluate potential mechanisms of diabetic complications, such as systemic and inflammatory factors, neuropathy measurements, occurrence of ulcers and diabetes-associated periodontitis.”

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; 2010

Free abstract

Isolated office hypertension (IOH), also known as “white-coat” hypertension, is associated with aortic stiffness and left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in patients being treated for hypertension and Type 2 diabetes, suggest study findings.

“IOH has been associated with structural cardiac abnormalities; however, its relation to worse cardiovascular prognosis remains uncertain,” write Gil Salles (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) and colleagues in the journal Hypertension Research.

They also say that little is known about the consequences of uncontrolled IOH in treated hypertensives, especially those with Type 2 diabetes.

Salles and co-investigators assessed whether IOH was independently linked to aortic stiffness, measured by carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV), and left ventricular mass index (LVMI), measured by echocardiography, in 523 pharmacologically-treated hypertensive patients with Type 2 diabetes.

The researchers measured office blood pressure (BP) and 24-hour ambulatory BP for all the patients. Office systolic/diastolic BP of 140/90 mmHg or above and ambulatory BP below 130/80 mmHg were used to diagnose uncontrolled IOH, whereas controlled office??”ambulatory hypertension was defined by office and 24-hour ambulatory BP below 140/90 mmHg and below 130/80 mmHg, respectively.

Overall, 29.1% of patients had controlled office??”ambulatory hypertension and 32.9% had uncontrolled IOH.

Patients with IOH had significantly greater LVMI and PWV than those with controlled hypertension, at 62.0 versus 52.9 gm^-2.7 and 11.5 versus 10.2 m/s, respectively.

This association persisted in significance following adjustment for various confounding factors such as age, gender, micro- or macrovascular diabetic complications, and dyslipidemia.

Uncontrolled IOH was found to increase the risk for aortic stiffness and LVH 2.7- and 2.1-fold, respectively, in Type 2 diabetics with treated hypertension.

“These relationships may be a pathophysiological link to augmented cardiovascular risk independent of other established determinants of cardiovascular damage; and uncontrolled IOH shall not be considered a benign condition in Type 2 diabetic patients,” conclude the authors.

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; 2010

Free abstract

The internet is full of information about diabetes specifically about diabetic symptoms. The loaded information is creating a confusing situation for many who are in search of specific information about the signs of diabetes. Most people who are at risk of diabetes are in search of specific information they want to know about the signs of diabetes.

If you are also one of those people then following reading will b of great help to you. As here you will find exactly what American Diabetes Association is stating about diabetic symptoms.

This is true that most of the times diabetes remain undetected. The prime reason behind this is that most signs of diabetes are so harmless that people often ignore them. Recent research studies have revealed that early detection and timely diagnosis of diabetic symptoms and proper treatment helps in reducing the risk of developing diabetic complications.

Signs of Type 1 Diabetes

Extreme fatigue: People suffering from type 1 diabetes start to feel completely tired exhausted and fatigued even from the routine work

Extreme hunger: Though they are eating more than usual; still there is a feeling of being hungry. The feelings are profound specifically soon after eating the bigger meals.

Frequent Urination: Excessive urination is another classic sign of diabetes.

Irritability: Mood swings and irritability always follows diabetes. The reason behind these mood swings are rapidly changing levels of blood sugar.

Unexplained Weight Loss: Though the diabetic is eating more than usual still he starts to lose weight without trying for it.

Unusual Thirst: Excessive thirst is the foremost sign of type 1 diabetes.

Signs of Type 2 Diabetes

Signs of type 2 diabetes includes any of the above mentioned signs of type 1 diabetes plus;

Frequent Infections: Recurrent infections, specifically vaginal infection in women is common in type 2 diabetes.

Blurred Vision: The vision also start to blur because of increased level of blood sugars.

Slow Healing Cuts or Bruises: The infections are not only more often but at the same time they take a longer healing time. Same holds true for cuts, bruises and wounds.

Numbness or Tingling in Hands and Fingers: Tingling and numbness sensation in extremities are also a sign of diabetes.

Recurring Infections of Gums, Skin, or Bladder: The infections of gums, bladder and skin are also common in diabetes.

However sometimes type 2 diabetics are unable to feel any symptom of diabetes.

American Diabetes Association strongly recommends that if ever any one or more of the diabetic symptoms are experienced it is important to contact doctor right away.

This is the prime concern with millions of people worldwide. The elevated blood sugar develops many diabetic complications when the pancreas fails to produce insulin sufficiently. It may also be due to the body system not responding properly though there is sufficient insulin production. When diabetes is ignored and not properly managed it can result in many unpleasant complications to vital organs. If right care is taken immediately on noticing any symptoms of diabetes you can be safe and prevent further complications.

Is your blood sugar elevated abnormally? Are you worried about your body condition? Immediately consult your doctor and get prescription medication following proper diagnosis. After having blood glucose controlled to normalcy you can manage diabetes by changing your lifestyle. For your benefit, top 3 ips are given here so that you keep your elevated blood sugar under control.

1. Know the effect of diet: Most of the diabetics choose to control diabetes simply by taking medications. They don’t have serious thoughts on diet choices. They think that diet is for survival of life and energy to the body. In fact, proper diet can effect wonderful changes in the body in addition to giving energy. Consuming diet foods that are rich in fiber can prove wonders in controlling elevated sugar level. High fiber foods cause slow digestion and stabilize the glucose levels. In this regard, vegetables and fruits have significant effect to control diabetes. If these natural foods are fresh you can enjoy comparatively a double effect of keeping your body energetic to the need and reducing glucose in the circulatory system.

2. Have regular exercise: Exercise is the best way of managing diabetes. It is helping the diabetic in many ways. It goes without saying that exercise can keep the cells ever dynamic and enhance the production of insulin. It also stimulates the utilization of glucose for conversion into energy. Regular exercise can reduce body fats and keep the blood cells energetic. When the fats are reduced your body becomes more reactive to insulin.

3. Monitor your blood glucose levels periodically: Whatever the medication you get and exercise you do, monitoring blood glucose level in your body is more important. Periodical monitoring can help you assess whether exercise routine and diet foods are really contributing to control diabetes. For this you may use a simple glucometer. If the sugar level is consistently abnormal you must consult your doctor so that he can modify your diet or exercise accordingly.