Blood glucose meter has gone a long way since it was first manufactured. The easier way to test using these tools is through accu-chek which is a brand of testing device that is manufactured by Roche Diagnostics. This will take the worry out of taking care of diabetes.

What does it consist of? The kit that looks like a cell phone consists of an electronic monitor. This measures the blood glucose through strips. It also has a lancet device that drives a needle through the outermost layer of the skin in the finger to obtain a tiny amount of blood pressed onto the strip in the electronic monitor.

Roche Diagnostics claims this prevents re-sticking that is painful. This company also declares that 90% of the diabetics find this lancet device to be the least painful. As you can see, since the first time the test is done is right, there is no unnecessary waste of strips

Due to the less retesting, one feels more confidence in the result. The test strip fills quickly with just a tiny drop of blood. This is done correctly on the first try by 97% of testers. There are integrity checks to spot and prevent invalid results.

This least painful lancing makes use of a technology that reduces the aching motion from side to side. In addition it also comes with a drum of six lancets that are preloaded. One does not have to handle the individual lancets. It also comes with nonslip rubber grips and six test sites on the body to choose.

What is in it for you? Here are the benefits made possible by the accu-check:

• The design is easy to hold with rubber grips.
• The result is as quick as five seconds.
• The size is small.
• There are four reminders to test which you can customize.
• It uses a 3-volt lithium coin cell battery that is easily available.
• The battery life is for 1000 tests.
• You can download a 500-value memory that could average the 7, 14 and 30-day readings.
• It is 3.7″ x 2″ x .9″ in size; 2.1 oz including the battery.
• It is well-suited with the data management tools of Accu-Chek.
• It is accepted by most healthcare plans that could be a saving to you.

This blood sugar monitoring system is fairly new in town. A leader in checking blood glucose levels, Roche Diagnostics has this kit that will cut the steps in half. It is designed to look like a mobile phone with all the tools needed in one device. I wish I were selling this because just writing about it makes me want to make a purchase. Hmm, perhaps someday.

The Accu-Chek Compact Plus is the only one of its kind with three solutions in one gadget. It has a lancing contraption that detaches, a test strip drum having 17 test strips and a meter which can display the test results brightly. Just push a button once and the strip comes up ready to use.

This makes it easier to do the test as it cuts the steps in half. It does away with the handling of the strips and is more hygienic with the simple and quick method. The user does not have to be concerned about accurate testing as the gadget self-codes. It takes only five seconds to test and the result is easy to read and it glows in the dark.

Another good point of this new monitoring system is that it needs only one hand to operate and is practically pain-free. It is available in diabetes clinics, pharmacies or from Roche itself. They will replace the present model as they run out in stores. Patient support will be provided through an Accu-Chek Customer Care Line for 365 days a year. This is indeed a good blood glucose meter.

The diabetic meal plan consist of lots of fruits and vegetables. You can choose from fresh, frozen, canned and even dried fruit and 100% fruit juice. Dried fruits should only be eaten in small portion sizes as they contain too much sugar. Fruit juice also can be used in the diabetic but should also be in very small portion sizes.

Everyone likes fruit because it is sweet. Even though fruit taste sweet it is still an allowed food item for diabetics. There are some items that you should not eat in the fruit category and then there are fruits that are the best choices for diabetics.

Fruits allow you to have a food item that is high in fiber and rich in vitamins and minerals. Fruits to avoid are those canned in syrup with sugar. Allowed fruit is fresh fruit of any kind. Best Fruit choices are: apples, blueberries, and strawberries.

Since the diabetic meal plan consist of snacks and meals that are 2 to 3 hours apart, but no more than 4 to 6 hours apart. Never skip a meal or snack. Remember, following the diabetic meal plan is part of the diabetic treatment.

A sample diabetic meal plan will have plenty of proteins in the form of beans and seafood. Add fruits, packed in water or in their own juices if not fresh and vegetables and whole grain breads.

If you physician has suggested you lose weight then try the 1800 calorie diabetic diet plan. This plan will consist of 3 to 5 servings of vegetables, 2 to 4 servings of fruit, 6 servings of grains, beans, and starchy vegetables, and 2 to 3 servings of dairy and small quantity of fat.

The diabetic diet is outlined above and remember to count your calories, eat dried fruit in small portions, and a very limited amount of sugar.

Type 2 diabetes is not a coronary heart disease (CHD) equivalent, suggest findings from an Austrian study presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes 46th annual meeting in Stockholm, Sweden.

Guidelines currently suggest that diabetes is a CHD risk equivalent, but there is little evidence to confirm this. Information on baseline CAD status among diabetics is missing from many studies, despite the fact that it is likely to have a significant influence on the degree of cardiovascular (CV) risk experienced, said Heinz Drexel (Vorarlberg Institute for Vascular Investigation and Treatment, Feldkirch, Austria), who presented the data.

To address this and clarify CHD risk in Type 2 diabetics, Drexel and team carried out a study in 750 Austrian individuals, aged 63 years on average, who consecutively underwent angiography for suspected coronary artery disease (CAD). Of these, 164 (21.9%) had Type 2 diabetes. The patients were followed up for 8 years for incident CV events - CV death, nonfatal stroke or myocardial infarction, or revascularization.

The group had a high level of CV risk factors, including hypertension (52%), smoking (58%), and high total cholesterol (mean, 218.0 mg/dl or 5.6 mmol/l).

Testing revealed that 244 patients did not have significant CAD (coronary stenoses of 50% or more) or Type 2 diabetes, 50 had diabetes but no CAD, 342 had significant CAD but no diabetes, and 114 had both CAD and diabetes.

Drexel and team found that the CV event rates for patients with no CAD or diabetes and those with diabetes but no CAD were 20.5% and 22.0%, respectively, representing a non-significant difference between these groups.

Patients with diabetes and CAD, however, did have a substantially higher CV event rate than those with CAD but no diabetes, at 53.5% versus 39.5%. This translated into a significant difference in CV event rate between diabetic patients with and without CAD.

Drexel suggested that the reason why patients with diabetes are thought to have similar CV risk to CAD patients could be that, “if you take a mean of the risk experienced by diabetic patients with CAD and those without, they appear to have a similar risk to those with CAD alone.”

Drexel said: “As long as the development of significant CAD can be prevented, Type 2 diabetes mellitus carried a much better prognosis than previously estimated”

He concluded: “Apart from its clinical and economical consequences, this is good news with important psychological implications for a considerable proportion of diabetic patients.”

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

Meeting website

Diabetics often suffer from depression. One study posits that twenty to forty per cent of all diabetics have at least minimal to mild depression at any given time, and that ninety per cent will suffer some degree of depression in any given five-year span.

But which came first — the diabetes or the depression? There is a lot of evidence that the physical effects of diabetes on metabolism and hormones lead to depression. The near overwhelming task of daily diabetes treatment also lends to a sense of helplessness that can lead to depression.

Now there is some evidence that some degree of depression or emotional stress can be one of the “triggers” for the onset of diabetes. The causes for diabetes are of course far more complex than stress. There are numerous risk factors involved, most of which are more pronounced in the onset of diabetes than emotional stresses. However, that there is a relationship between diabetes and depression is clear.

What can be done to combat depression from diabetes? Here are five important keys.

1 - Information and Education: Depression is often associated with helplessness and hopelessness. One step to combat this is to continually be informed about diabetes. Just the fact and activity of researching and reading about diabetes and its treatments is a step toward hope and of doing something about it. So an ongoing education should always be pursued, through books, magazines, websites, support groups and so on.

2 - Proper Treatment: It’s important to have a good doctor and diabetes care team. With their counsel, you can establish the right diet, medication, exercise and so on. However, most of the responsibility for your diabetes treatment is up to you to manage — which heavy responsibility is often part of the depression. In cases where the depression is more than minimal to mild, your doctor may determine medical treatment for the depression as well as for your diabetes.

3 - A Systematic or Methodological Approach: It takes a great deal of effort every day to control and treat diabetes. Even if you don’t have diabetes but are caring for someone who does, you know that it can be overwhelming even without the effects of the disease itself weakening your resolve and abilities. This too can lead to feeling helpless and hopeless.

It is important, then — perhaps vital — to systematize, categorize and prioritize your care. Goal-setting and time management skills can help you to bring everything together and make it work. When you know what to do and when to do it and are confident in your system, it brings a great lift and sense of relief.

4 - The Right Attitude: The right attitude is not, or at least should not be, dependent on your feelings and emotions. On the other hand, the right attitude is more than simple “positive thinking”. It begins with who you are as a human being, your core beliefs and life-expectations. You need to develop convictions about who you are and what you want from life based on your beliefs and expectations, not based on your feelings and emotions. Focusing your thoughts on these things rather than on how you happen to feel will help transform your attitude.

5 - Support: No person with diabetes should think or feel that they are all alone in their battle with their disease. Their family and friends certainly should be supportive and encouraging, but even in those cases where there is not support from family or friends, there are diabetes support groups available to help and befriend. Look for them through your doctor’s office, the local hospital, library, college or school. There are support groups and forums abounding on the Internet (though one should be wary and discerning about in formation on the Internet). A lot of support is often aimed at helping one another overcome depression.

These keys work together to help combat the effects of both diabetes and depression. These are not “five simple steps”. They each take time and effort, and each one is necessary. But the payoff should be a confident answer to helplessness and hopelessness and a buffer to feelings of despair and depression.

Some of the first steps in reversing diabetes almost always will include a more sensible eating plan as well as an increase in your level of physical activity. Many people believe that being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes can be a devastating experience. Some may even consider it to be a death sentence! It is important to know that if diabetes is treated with the utmost care in mind, you will be able to live your life without too many inconvenient complications.

One of the most important steps to consider is to find someone who is willing to listen to you when you have concerns and who takes the time to answer your questions. There is nothing more frustrating than feeling as though you are not being heard, compounded by the fact that you are facing a health challenge such as Type 2 diabetes.

Another area to consider when seeking advice is to be sure you have teamed up with a health care professional that you feel comfortable with. You do not have to limit yourself to a general physician. You may prefer to be seen by a specialist who limits their practice to only that of diabetics. You will want to be sure that your health care provider is concentrating on reducing your blood sugar, or helping you to get more normal levels.

Look for a diabetes expert can help you to monitor your blood sugar and teach you how to take your insulin or any other medications that you may have to take. Your health care provider may recommend books or even a diabetes course you can take. This can be a good way to learn the practical techniques of dealing with Type 2 diabetes.

A good dietician will also be beneficial in helping you to decide on the proper diet, which will help you to maintain your weight. Monitoring your blood sugar and controlling your cholesterol levels is extremely important when you are attempting to reverse diabetes. An accredited dietician may be great source of information for help in this area.

An ophthalmologist is another professional you will want to include in your quest to reversing diabetes. It is highly recommended that people that have been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes include annual dilated retinal examinations starting immediately upon diagnosis. Early detection is the key to prevent any irreparable conditions that can be attributed to diabetes. When addressed early, much can be done to prevent and treat diabetic eye problems.

It is important to include a podiatrist when considering professional advice and certain step to follow and preventative care. Even if you are not experiencing any foot problems currently, you will want to include a podiatrist. So many times people with diabetes can suffer from nerve damage due to high blood sugar levels. This can result in tingling, burning or numbness in your hands, but more frequently in your feet.

Last but certainly not least is a dentist. It has been reported that high levels of sugar can actually be in saliva which could be a contributing cause of tooth decay as well as gum disease. It is recommended that you brush your teeth twice daily, and see your dentist at least twice a year.

Like many Americans, perhaps you or someone you care for has been diagnosed with diabetes. That’s serious news considering the condition will affect and alter your life. The good news is, technology has advanced significantly and has improved the approach to this way of life while maintaining quality of life.

The most common type of diabetes in adults is Type 2 diabetes. Diabetes is a condition where the body doesn’t produce the right amount of insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps in the processing of glucose into energy. Diabetes can also be caused if the cells in the body don’t process the insulin properly.

In the earlier days of the treatment of diabetes, your doctor would recommend the amount of insulin and how often to inject insulin into your system. It was more of a guessing game based on how you felt before and after eating. Then you would monitor the blood sugar remaining by testing your urine with test strips.

Then enter the age of glucometers. Throughout the day one could prick their finger and do a quick and easy check of their blood to see the level of the blood sugar. Once this was determined then an adjustment of their insulin injection could be altered accordingly. Glucometers have advanced as well, requiring fewer steps in acquiring and testing the blood as well as decreasing the discomfort of having to prick one’s fingers.

The development of the insulin pump brings diabetics the most current treatment to date. An insulin pump is a device similar in size to a deck of cards that delivers insulin without the patient having to inject themselves with insulin. The pump can be attached to a belt or carried in a pocket. Attached to the pump is a plastic tube that has a needle or catheter that is placed just under the skin.

The insulin is then released into the body in two different ways. First there is the basal rate which means there is a steady trickle of insulin into the user throughout the day and night. Larger amounts of insulin called bolus doses are released to treat an expected rise in the blood sugar resulting from a meal or snack.

As for the logistics of using an insulin pump, the reservoir in the pump that holds the insulin is called the insulin pump cartridge. The size of the cartridge and the amount of units it holds can vary from 170 units up to 300 units of insulin. In determining the best size of cartridge you need is to consider how many units of insulin you require for three days.

There are definitely pros and cons of using an insulin pump. Fortunately the pros outweigh the cons when you consider it reduces the likelihood of individual injections throughout the day. Even more, a pump increases the ease of controlling diabetes which in return improves one’s quality of life. On the other side, they can be expensive to purchase and operate. You have to adjust to being attached to the pump at all times, and there may be the possibility of gaining weight.

It is the most common form of diabetes. Formerly it was called adult-onset diabetes, but it can occur at any age. It usually begins with insulin resistance. This is when the fat, muscles, and liver do not use the insulin properly. When insulin resistance first starts, the pancreas tries to keep up. It eventually loses its ability to secrete enough insulin and high blood sugar and diabetes occur.

For non-diabetics a desirable range of blood glucose is 70 to 120. Their blood glucose may rise after meals, but within a few hours it returns to normal.

For diabetics, the desirable range can vary. Your health care provider can tell you what levels are best for you. However, generally a desirable pre-meal target range is 90 to 130 and less than 180 one to two hours after meals. Keeping your blood glucose within a normal range (and not having wild swings) is one of the best ways to prevent diabetic complications.

These complications can include:

1. Blindness (diabetes is the number one cause of blindness)

2. Loss of kidney function

3. Loss of feeling in feet and legs

4. Amputation of feet and legs

5. Increased rate of heart disease and stroke

6. Erectile dysfunction

7. Recurrent urinary tract infections

8. Loss of memory

9. Decreases in vocabulary and overall intelligence

10. Lessening of attention span

There are four things that can be done to prevent these problems in diabetics:

1. Checking your blood glucose often. Your health care provider will tell you how often you need to check this. Generally, it is five times a day. When you get up (before breakfast), after breakfast, after lunch, after dinner, and just before you go to bed.

2. Eat properly. Keeping track of carbohydrates in relationship to:

3. Exercising or keeping active. Never start an exercise program without first checking with your health care provider.

4. Taking your medications. Not all diabetics take medications and having to start taking medications does not mean that you are bad. It can simply mean that your diabetes has progressed. It could also mean that your pancreas is producing even less insulin than it did before or that you are not absorbing the insulin as well as you once did.

In conclusion, keeping your blood glucose at a steady level that is within your target range is one of the best things that you can do to prevent problems.

Diabetes can cause many problems within the body. One of these complications is called diabetic retinopathy. Diabetic retinopathy is a condition when the small blood vessels, or capillaries, in the retina (the part of the eye responsible for vision) become weak. The blood vessel walls themselves become very elastic and bulge out in response to the pressure of the blood being delivered to the tissues in the retina. This bulging is similar to an aneurysm and is sometimes considered a microaneurysm or weakness and bulging of a very small blood vessel.

There are two types of diabetic retinopathy: nonproliferative retinopathy and proliferative retinopathy. Nonproliferative retinopathy is when the blood vessel walls become too weak and leak or ooze blood into the eyeball. As a result, the tissues in the eye do not receive an adequate supply of oxygenated blood and start to break down causing vision problems. In addition, the extra fluid that collects within the eyeball can cause increased pressure within the eye (increased intraocular pressure), which may result in blurred vision or other vision problems.

Proliferative retinopathy is considered an advanced form of nonproliferative retinopathy. With proliferative retinopathy, the lack of blood supply being delivered to the tissues of the retina signals the eye to “grow” more blood vessels. However, these additional blood vessels have the same problems. The vessel walls are very weak and often cause more blood to leak into the eyeball. The more pressure that accumulates within the eye, the higher the risk for the optic nerve (nerve responsible for delivering images that are seen to the brain) to be pinched off. Without the optic nerve, our brain does not receive any signals about what we are looking at, resulting in a sense of blindness. Occasionally, if the increased pressure is caught quickly, the fluid can be drained and vision returned.

Some symptoms that diabetics should monitor for is:

? Blurred vision

? Blind spots

? “Floating” spots (blind spots that move around or “float”)

? Poor night vision

? Eye pain

Typically, people with nonproliferative retinopathy do not experience any vision changes or blind spots until the condition worsens and develops into proliferative retinopathy. That is why it is important to have yearly total eye exams. Your optometrist or ophthalmologist can perform a screening by dilating your pupils (black part of the eye) with eye drops and looking at the blood vessels in the back of your eyes. It is a painless procedure that may protect you from losing your eyesight.

Many diabetics have some degree of nonproliferative retinopathy. By catching it early, medications (eye drops) can help to keep the pressure within the eye under control and prevent vision problems.

Also, keeping blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels under control will help to prevent the retinopathy from developing or progressing.

A new book that is available called “The BetesBuster Plan” can help with most all diabetic conditions. It is an easy step-by-step plan that uses balanced nutrition (meals) and exercise as it’s key components. Add in some natural supplements and the right attitude and shazzam!, you are on your way to reversing your diabetic condition!

Type 2 diabetes is now so prevalent that it is being described as an epidemic. Yet, at the beginning of the last Century it was almost unheard of. According to the American Diabetes Association, 7 percent of the US population has been diagnosed as having the condition and many more are undiagnosed. The 40 % rise in the condition over the last thirty years closely follows the three-fold increase in obesity over the same period. The position is similar in other “Western” countries.

It is no coincidence that more than nine out of ten type 2 diabetics are overweight. Obesity, often the result of unhealthy life style choices, is a known risk factor for this condition. Yet, over the last 20 years, the number of American adults following a healthy life style has declined.

The main reason why Americans are so fat is directly linked to our modern diet. Not only are we eating more high fat convenience foods and snacks than previously, we are also eating bigger portions. Here are some examples taken form Why are Americans so fat? by Cathy Newman published in National Geographic August 2004. Pages 46 - 61:

• In 1954 a Burger King hamburger weighed 2.8 ounces and contained 202 calories; in 2004 a Burger King hamburger weighed 4.3 ounces and contained 310 calories.
• In 1955 a McDonald’s French Fries weighed 2.4 ounces and contained 210 calories. Fifty years later the portion size had increased to 7 ounces and contained 610 calories.
• In 1900 a Hershey Bar was 2 ounces and contained 297 calories; in 2004 it had increased to 7 ounces with 1000 calories.
• In 1916 a serving of coca cola was 6.7 fluid ounces and had 79 calories; in 2004 the serving had increased to 16 fluid ounces with 194 calories.
• In 1950 a portion of movie popcorn was 3 cups containing 174 calories; in 2004 the serving had increased in size seven fold containing a huge 1,700 calories.

To put that into perspective, a move size popcorn and cola contains between them almost the entire daily calorie requirements for an adult woman and 80% of an adult man’s calorie requirements. One Hershey bar contains half of the calories required each day by an adult woman and 40% of an adult man’s.

It is not just an American problem. In a recent study reported on the BBC’s web site (www.bbc.co.uk) Britons are eating 30% more food than they did in 1971.

Being overweight or obese is a matter of taking in more calories than are used. Most overweight and obese people are out of calorific balance, but only by a tiny amount of calories per day. An excess of 250 calories a day will add 26 pound in weight in a year.

Our increased calorie intake, due in large part to increased portion size, coupled with an increasingly sedentary lifestyle lie at the heart of the avoidable epidemic of type 2 diabetes. But just as the condition is closely aligned to lifestyles, so is the way to reverse it. Having a healthy, balanced, calorie controlled diet will aid weight loss particularly when combined with regular exercise.

If you are consuming fewer calories than you burn up, your body will make up the calories that it needs by burning fat reserves, which in turn makes it easier for your insulin to work effectively. This is why following a healthy, balanced diet is important. A deficit of 250 calories a day will result in a loss of 26 pounds in a year.

Obesity substantially increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. By having a healthy diet, taking regular amounts of moderate exercise and losing weight you can significantly reduce the risk of developing insulin resistance and of falling victim to type 2 diabetes - the avoidable epidemic.

If you have ever experienced a professional massage before then you know what a indescribable, relaxing, invigoration feeling you will receive once you experience one. There should be an insurance law with mandatory prescriptions for diabetics.

A professional massage is totally relaxing which can certainly help lower blood sugars for diabetics. The massage itself also can help stimulate the blood flow. The massage therapist will hit certain pressure points on your body. When they do you will certainly feel it.

These pressure points are pleasurable, you will be amazed how relaxed you will become when they start working on your feet. Since there are a lot of pressure points there. The massage takes place in a small room on a massage table. You will be asked to remove your shoes & clothing.

Don’t be shy, you are covered with a towel. This greatly helps you to relax since you are not wearing any constricting underwear or clothing that can pull your skin. You will also have a soothing, relaxing aroma of some kind to inhale during your session.

The room is usually dark, you don’t need to see anyway. Massages are given by the hour, half-hour, etc. The price will depend where you live. There are different types of massages; Swedish, deep tissue, Shiatsu, Thai. The therapist will use a light natural oil on your skin to massage with so there is no friction.

Diabetics don’t let this Relaxing friend pass you by go & get this needed therapy you deserve. Once you get started you won’t want to leave the table. You more than likely will fall asleep.